To Wish Impossible Things
by Sophie1973
Summary: Stefan doesn't behave like Klaus hoped he would, so he takes some measures...Stefan/Caroline, Damon & Caroline friendship.
1. Chapter 1

Title : To Wish Impossible Things

Pairing : Stefan/Caroline, Damon & Caroline friendship, a bit of Damon/Elena.

Small spoilers based on the S3 trailer.

A/N : After toying with some ideas for a while, I decided for yet another post S2 fic, hopefully with my own twist ;o) Please enjoy, and reviews are greatly appreciated.

"This is useless. We're going nowhere."

Elena throws back a book on the table with an irritated gesture. Damon and Caroline exchange a look and the blonde got up.

"We are all tired and we need some sleep. I'll come back tomorrow, ok?"

Elena nodes, smiling despite her state of extreme frustration. They hug, then Damon walk Caroline to the door and step out with her on the front porch., closing the door behind him.

He never thought he would have feel that way, but he likes spending some time with Caroline lately. In the big mess that has been their lives since Stefan left six weeks ago, she has been the one keeping a clear head as well as things organized. Damon knows that she hurts a lot too – Stefan was her closest friend – but she has shown a real strength of character that he didn't expect of her, and he has come to admire and appreciate the help and comfort she has provided over the last few weeks.

"Want a ride home, Blondie?" he asks with a lopsided smile, needing to relax the atmosphere.

She laughs. "With you? What about my reputation? Besides, I came with my Barbie mobile."

She looks away for a second before turning her blue eyes on him again.

"We are never going to find him."

It is more a statement than a question and Damon sighs. "No. We won't."

Caroline looks at him, see the pain in his eyes and her heart aches for him as well as for Stefan.

Damon leans against the wall. "It's not that I want to give up. But we have to be real, here. If they don't want to be found, there's no way we will. We don't even have a decent plan," he finished with a bitter smile.

"We have been putting our lives on hold," she said softly. "I don't think that is what Stefan would have wanted when he gave himself over to Klaus."

Damon shrugs. "Who knows what went on in that stupid head of his?" he mumbles, the familiar wave of guilt crushing his heart. He shakes it off.

"I'll call Bonnie and Alaric tomorrow, tell them that it's time to stop this. Are you ok with it?"

She nods. "I am. But good luck explaining that to Elena."

Damon winces. "I might ask Ric to do it for me."

"Let's decide for a meeting with everyone tomorrow, ok? Good night, Damon."

She raises slightly on her toes and give him a kiss on the cheek. She always expects him to protest when she does that, but he hasn't yet.

She suspects that he kind of likes it.

* * *

><p>When he comes back in the house, Damon is sure that Elena has gone upstairs already, so he's a bit surprised to find her standing in front of the fireplace.<p>

"I'm not giving up on finding Stefan," she tells him, but she doesn't turn around.

"Nobody said anything about giving up. But you said it yourself, Elena. This is useless."

"I didn't mean it like that."

"I know. Still, what can we do? We've been trying for six weeks and we failed every single time!"

He went to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a drink, hoping it would calm him down. He really didn't want to get in a fight with her.

"Caroline is right. We can't go on putting our lives on hold like this."

"Of course, if Caroline said so..." she says with a sarcastic laugh.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. I hadn't realized that you and Caroline had become such close friends. As far as I know not so long ago you couldn't stand each other."

There's obvious jealousy in her voice, but instead of making him happy, it just confuses the hell out of him. She seems so desperate on finding her boyfriend, yet she don't like him getting close to another girl ?

Anger rise in his throat. "Do I really have to remind you that Caroline has been there for you everyday, doing her best to help us find Stefan?"

"And do I really have to remind you that Stefan is the brother that sacrificed everything to save your life, yet you seem so eager to move on with said life and forget all about him!"

That is a really low blow and she regrets it the instant it is out, but it is too late.

"Go to Hell," Damon mutters and leave the room.

She doesn't try to hold him back.

Things have been tense between them since Stefan left. There's been no talk of the kiss or even the words that were spoken that night, mainly because the guilt is still there, and they mistakenly both thought that they could easily ignore it while searching for Stefan.

They can't.

Elena doesn't really know what's going on in Damon's head, although she can pretty much imagine it. She knows what's going on in hers though, ans she can't help being haunted by Katherine's words.

It's_ ok to love them both. I did._

And lately it's been very clear in Elena's mind that she does too.

* * *

><p>Caroline stops her car in front of her home. Everything seems to be dark inside, and it's not that late, which means her mom is still working.<p>

She locks her car door and walks to her front porch, while typing a text to Damon to tell him she's home safe. She protested at first when he asked her to do it before yielding. She knows where that come from.

Damon has become very protective towards her lately, and she guessed that part of it was his way to make amends for his past behavior, the other part being that he is her Sire, and there's a connection between them even though he had done his best to ignore it until now.

Her mom had kind of the same epiphany, so everything would be really great in Caroline's life if it wasn't for the fact that Stefan is missing. And it become more obvious everyday that they won't see him again before a long, long while...if ever.

That pains her much more than she's willing to admit.

What pains her even more is the sudden prick feeling in her neck. _Vervain_, she has the time to think before everything goes black.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for all the reviews and alerts so far ! It really motivates to know that people enjoy this.;o)**

When Elena comes down the next morning, she finds Damon in the kitchen, sitting in front of a half-eaten cereal bowl, and a glass of blood, reading the newspaper. She takes her own bowl and some orange juice from the fridge.

He looks at her briefly before getting back to his newspaper, commenting, "No mention of any bloodbath. I guess they stayed in last night."

Elena approaches him, puts her arm around him and her head on his shoulder and simply says, "I'm sorry."

Damon pushes away the newspaper, put his own arm around her waist and kisses her softly on the forehead. He can't stay mad at her for long anyway.

They are both in such a bad place right now, missing Stefan, feeling powerless/guilty/angry or all three at the same time. And what makes it worse are all those unresolved feelings, the ones that they don't dare to mention, but not talking about it doesn't mean that it isn't there, and it hurts.

They are both painfully aware that nothing can be discussed, let alone happen, as long as Stefan is away.

But the one thing they can do is find comfort in one another, and this is why Elena stays in his arms a little while longer, deluding herself into thinking that this is all she's looking for...comfort.

Damon's cell phone rings and he lets her go.

"It's Liz," he says, watching the screen before responding.

He is a bit surprised because since that eventful night, the sheriff hasn't been talking to them much. Even if she has kept their secret, she carefully stayed away. Damon just knows that Caroline and her tried to mend their relationship and that it was rather successful.

"Hi Liz."

Elena can hear the panicked tone in the woman's voice on the other line. Something is wrong, and Damon's frown confirms it.

"Liz, calm down, I don't get a word of what you're saying."

There's a distinct sob, followed by what seems to be a clearer explanation, as Elena can see Damon's face gets furious and terrified at the same time.

"I'll get Alaric and we'll be there within the next 15 minutes," he says before hanging up.

He stays silent for a moment, and Elena doesn't dare to ask. Something terrible has happened and she doesn't want to know, she really doesn't.

Suddenly the bowl flies across the kitchen, crashing on the ground in several pieces, the remaining cereal scattered everywhere. She takes away the glass before it undergoes the same fate. She's not sure she's ever seen Damon in such a rage before.

"What?" Elena asks in a whisper.

"Klaus. He took Caroline."

* * *

><p>When she wakes up, she can feel that she's in an entirely different environment. Is that the sound of waves crashing on the shore?<p>

Caroline sits up and realizes quickly that this is a bad idea as the room starts spinning in a rather violent fashion.

And she remembers.

She was vervained. To her the after effects always feels like a hangover.

She waits for the dizziness to pass before looking around. The room is elegantly decorated in cream colors. The chocolate brown curtains are ajar, confirming that she is indeed close to a beach.

She starts getting out of the bed and sees that she's wearing a long shirt that doesn't belong to her...and nothing else. She gets up, stating to panic. Where is she? Who took her?

And more importantly, where are her clothes?

She spots them on the dresser, neatly folded. They have been washed too apparently, which Caroline finds kind of comforting, because if whoever took her wanted her dead, they wouldn't wash her clothes, right?

She holds on to that idea while dressing, before putting her hand on the doorknob and turning it.

The door opens.

There is a long corridor with at least 4 other doors, so this seems to be a big house. A very silent one. She starts to go down the stairs, wondering if someone will appear and prevent her from simply going out. Which reminds her...she checks her hand. Yes, her ring is still there.

More confused by the minute, she arrives in the hall. The house seems to be one of those expensive beach houses that she saw in magazines.

The front door is right there. Just a few more steps...

"Right this way miss, if you please?"

Caroline mutters a curse before turning around. A man is standing there, dressed in a suit, wearing an affable smile on his face. But the question mark is clearly rhetorical, as under his polite tone there is undoubtedly an order.

She follows him.

Mere seconds later, he opens the door to a large dining room and let Caroline comes in. A man is sitting there, and Caroline's blood freezes in her veins.

"Care to join me for breakfast, miss Forbes?"

* * *

><p>The atmosphere is tense in the Boarding House. Damon is standing still in front of the fireplace. He doesn't say anything but Bonnie finds his quietness a bit scary. She arrived earlier with Jeremy after Elena called her to let her know about Caroline.<p>

Bonnie doesn't understand. Why Caroline ? She figures that with Stefan Klaus had what he wanted, and that he would let them be. Apparently it is wishful thinking.

"Do we know for sure it is Klaus?" she asks Alaric.

"Yes. He left a note," the teacher answers, handing her a piece of paper. Bonnie unfolds it.

_It would be wise to stop looking for us, or the lovely miss Forbes will be in serious trouble. Consider yourself warned. K._

"I don't get it," Jeremy intervenes, voicing Bonnie's earlier thoughts. "Why Caroline? Why not Elena?"

"Maybe he doesn't know that I'm alive," Elena suggests.

"Oh, he knows," Damon comments with a sarcastic laugh. "Believe me, he knows exactly what we've been doing all this time."

There's a silence because that idea is actually really creepy. They naively never thought that Klaus would keep someone in Mystic Falls to watch them.

"What do you want to do?" Alaric asks Damon.

"Well, it's not as if he left us with a choice, right? If we do anything, he'll hurt Caroline. Not that we've been super efficient at doing anything anyway."

"We must have done something right if he had to kidnap Caroline to force us to back off," Alaric points out.

"It might be an empty threat, just to make us stop looking, and he has no real intention..." Elena starts.

Damon silences her with a look. "I'm not taking that chance. Besides, have you met the guy?"

"I hate to say this, but he might have...disposed of her already," Alaric says, earning a scathing glare from Damon and an horrified look from the others.

"Don't say that, please," Bonnie asks. She turns to Elena. "What do you think?"

Elena looks really defeated. "It's Caroline, and it's Stefan. If the only way to keep them safe is moving on with our lives, then I guess indeed we have no choice."

Bonnie doesn't see exactly how they are supposed to move on. How to be sure that Klaus won't get rid of Caroline and/or Stefan even if they stop looking for them ?

She refuses to move on. Not without trying one last time.

* * *

><p>Caroline thinks this must be a dream, or more a nightmare. She pinches herself.<p>

Klaus sees it and smiles. "No Miss Forbes – can I call you Caroline?- you are not dreaming."

Trying very hard not to freak out, she asks, "Why am I here? Where is Stefan?"

"All in good time, Caroline. Don't you want to sit down and have some of that delicious peach pie? You must be hungry after sleeping so long. I have blood too, by the way."

"Yeah well, your minion kind of went overboard with the vervain."

"Oh yes, don't worry about it, he's already been punished."

Caroline looks at him incredulously.

_Don't worry?_

Oh, she does worry. She does worry_ a lot._

A thought suddenly occurs to her. "How long have I been here?"

Klaus takes the time to drink his glass of blood then wipe his mouth before answering, "About 48 hours. My Jet brought you here in 3 hours and you slept the rest of the time."

2 days ! They must be freaking out in Mystic Falls, especially her mom.

"Where is here?"

"Here is beautiful Cape Cod, dear Caroline. I'm sure a walk on the beach would do you a world of good. You look a little pale."

At this moment Stefan enters the room. Caroline can honestly say that she's never been happier to see someone in her life.

Apparently so is Stefan, because he runs to her. "Caroline !"

He takes her hands in his and looks at her like he hasn't seen her in six years, and not six weeks. Caroline really likes the way he looks at her at that moment, like she's the most beautiful thing in the world. He has a big smile on his face for at least 3 seconds before losing it, and it's like she can read his mind.

Her being there,it can't be a good thing.

"Why is she here?" he asks Klaus.

Klaus makes a motion with his hand to one of his minions who waits by the door. Before Stefan realizes what happens, a stake appears in the minion's hand, and he plunges it in Caroline's belly.

Her eyes widens, both with surprise and pain. The man withdraws the stake and she doubles over, holding her bleeding stomach.

Horrifies, Stefan screams, "No!" and wants to reach her, but the minion stops him.

"This is why, Stefan," Klaus drawls. "This kind of emotional behavior is unacceptable. I told you I want the true ripper back. So far I haven't even see a glimpse of him. So I though our sweet Miss Forbes could help you with that."

Dumbfounded, Stefan watches Klaus, trying to make sense of it all. He was overjoyed to see Caroline there for a minute, but he realizes now that the true horror might only just begin.

"This was not part of our deal, he says through clenched teeth.

Klaus rises from his chair and walks towards them.

"I decided to make a new one. Every time I will have to witness one of these disgusting human traits you like to entertain, the lovely Caroline will suffer the consequences. If you behave like I want you too, no harm will come to her. She might even join us on our little adventures, what do you think? This house definitely needs a feminine presence."

He bites his wrist and put it to Caroline's mouth, who's too weak and too much in pain to protest. She drinks and very quickly her face regains some color.

Klaus helps her get back on her feet very gently, but addresses them both a chilly smile.

"Remember...the one who inflicts the pain can as easily take it away...or inflict some more."

Caroline can feel that the wound on her stomach is already completely healed. She turns to Stefan, hoping to find some comfort in his eyes.

But Stefan has his own eyes closed, and when he reopens them they are cold and hard, and is face is pure granite.

"I'm sorry Klaus. It won't happen again."

And now Caroline is not worried anymore.

She is truly terrified.


	3. Chapter 3

**First I want to apologize for the slight delay, I was away for a few days and didn't get the chance to type this chapter on my computer until today.**

**Second I want to thank my dear friend Heather for all her help & research about Cape Cod as well as helping me with my english and the description of the house in one scene. If you are a GG fan go check her Chuck & Blair fic ! (under Heatherlina).**

**Third, for all the Buffy nostalgics you will find a little wink in that chapter.**

**Last but not least, I thank again all the people who take the time not only to read this story, but also send me reviews. I write this for you ;o)**

**Hope this chapter will be worth the wait ! Enjoy.**

* * *

><p>Caroline is sitting on her bed, holding a glass of blood.<p>

She's scared. She's scared and she's lost and she really does want to cry but it won't make it better so she holds it back.

There's a slight knock on her door and she rises to open it. Stefan is on the other side.

Before she even opens her mouth he puts a finger to his lips, walks into the room and closes the door. He takes her hand and lead her to into the adjacent bathroom, closes that door and turns open the faucet.

"Are you ok ?" he whispers.

She nods, happy and relieved to see that he seems to be back to his more human self.

"Where is Klaus?"

"He left a while ago. But I don't want to take any chances with Spike or Riley."

"Who?"

"The minions."

"Oh."

She suddenly gives him one of her bright smile. "I'm really glad to see that you're ok."

Impulsively she hugs him and he hugs her back, strongly. He must have feel really lonely these past few weeks.

"I'm happy to see you, Care, but I'm not happy that you're here. I'm sorry. I had no idea he would go that far."

"How have you been doing?" she asks him.

"Better than I expected," he tells her, and she's not sure she must be reassured by that statement or really worried.

He takes her face in his hands and looks at her intently. "We don't have much time, Caroline, so listen to me carefully. I don't know what kind of plans Klaus has for you, but it is very important that you switch your emotions off most of the time."

Her eyes widens. "But I've never done it before."

"I know, that's why I'm telling you."

"Is that what you are doing?"

"It's the only way."

"But you're not doing it all the time, right?" she asks him, really concerned by his speech.

"No."

She feels a little bit better at that, even if she begins to understand that the Stefan before her is not the Stefan she used to know. That Stefan is gone. And she doesn't know what to expect from this one.

"I have to go. I don't want to give Klaus a reason to hurt you."

"Ok." She wishes he could stay, so she could try to understand him a bit better, but it is impossible. She feels a twist in her stomach. Stefan is so closed to her, but he's never appeared so unapproachable.

He kisses quickly on the forehead ans she takes comfort in that affectionate gesture that tells her that maybe the old Stefan is still lurking in there somewhere.

Once he is gone, she stays in the bathroom a while longer before realizing the water is still running and she turns it off. She comes back in the room, feeling confused by the whole situation and Stefan's attitude.

She's a bit frightened when she realizes he hasn't even ask her about Elena.

* * *

><p>"Open the door, Damon. I know you are in there."<p>

Damon sighs upon hearing Bonnie's voice. He had hoped that if he didn't say anything she would leave but the little witch is nothing if not persistent.

He had also hoped to spend a whole evening wallowing in self-pity and ruminating about the fact that his brother and one of the girls he cared the most about were out there slaughtering people, taking orders from one shit crazy hybrid.

His first glass of bourbon is already waiting for him on the table and it is supposed to be followed by many, many others.

He opens the door. "And how exactly do you know I'm in here?" he greets her.

She's a bit put off by this rude welcome – although with Damon she shouldn't be anymore now- but answers, "I can feel you."

He makes a grimace, "That's gross, Bonnie," before letting her enter. He smirks when she rolls her eyes, and she follows him back in the salon.

"So, what brings you to my door on this fine night?"

"I went to see the Witches."

That stops him right in his tracks and he turns around. Although she expected that look on his face, it still makes her uncomfortable.

"Of course you went to see the Witches," he tells her with a big fake smile, before speeding and stopping in front of her with a menacing look. "Does the safety of your best friend means nothing to you?"

He is clearly mad but quite frankly she expected worse, so she stands her ground and looks him in the eyes.

"Come on Damon. Do you really think that I wouldn't try one more time? And I know you. You didn't fool me with this 'moving on' crap. I know that having to stay here doing nothing is killing you."

He looks away and picks up his glass, swallowing it in one gulp. "It's driving me crazy," he finally admits. "I'm this close to blowing a fuse."

"Then you'll be interested by what I learned."

He looks at her surprised. "What, they actually helped you again?"

She nods. "I told them we needed something, anything to help us kill Klaus."

He snorts. "Did you forget? He's indestructible."

"No one is completely indestructible, Damon. Turns out there might be a way."

He clearly doesn't believe her but say anyway, "Go on."

"There's a plant. It's from Brazil, and I did some research. It's actually facing extinction. But if it is mixed with vervain and wolfs bane, it is deadly to him."

Damon raises an eyebrow. "Great. So, do I invite Klaus over for a drink and pour it in his glass? Oh, wait, I have to go to Brazil first and find that almost extinct plant. I'll do that tomorrow before breakfast."

"Damon, this is serious. We thought Klaus couldn't be killed and now we might have a way!"

He rolls his eyes. "Bonnie, it's great that you found this, it really is. But what are we supposed to do with it? And more important, how are we going to get it?"

She hesitates before saying,"I can try to obtain it through the supernatural black market."

He laughs at that. "The supernatural black market, huh? I always knew you were more Eastwick than Waverly Place."

She smiles. "I don't know how we can use it, but I thought that we should know that it's an option and it's out there."

He ponders that for a bit. "Ok. How much will it cost?"

She shakes her head. "I don't know, but I would go with pretty expensive."

"And you are sure about this?"

She shrugs. "They are the same witches that helped me find the cure for you."

"Ok then. If you find it, buy it. I'll give you the money. Oh, and Bonnie? Thank you," he adds, because he realizes that he never exactly thanked her for helping Stefan that day, even if it resulted with him leaving.

She acknowledges his thanks with a simple smile and walks back to the front door. She turns to him. "I made sure I wasn't followed," she tells him. " I love Caroline,a and I care a lot about Stefan. I couldn't just move on like you all seemed decided on doing."

"I understand. And It's not like I want to forget all about them just because Klaus threatened us. I just didn't want to play with their safety without a solid plan."

"Then we're on the same page."

He gives her one of his lopsided smile. "Wow. When was the last time that happened?"

Her green eyes shines mischievously."The day after never, I think. Good night, Damon."

"Night Bonnie."

He watches her climbs into her car before getting back in the house.

* * *

><p><em>One week later<em>

Caroline withdraws herself from the beach house. She has taken Klaus 'suggestion for a walk and done it everyday since her arrival. It was not like she has plenty of other exciting things to do anyway.

She toes off her sandal and traipses down the cedar stairway leading to the white sand. The long, green blades of grass are tickling her legs, and her mind is spinning with doubts and questions. What exactly is she doing here? She keeps wondering what Klaus' true intentions are and if she can convince Stefan to escape with her.

The problem is Stefan doesn't seem to want to escape.

She has barely seen him as Klaus has sent him here or there, and the rest of the time he has avoided her. She knows he's probably doing it with only her safety in mind, but it still hurts nonetheless. She feels more rejected than ever.

The calming sound of the ocean does nothing to quell the questions in her mind. The waves crash at her feet, the straps of her sandal hanging loosely by her fingertips. She decides to sit and watch the approaching sunset. The gold and purple colors highlights the day's sky, and she really appreciate the view in spite of her inner turmoil.

Her eyes turn towards the magnificent house, high on a top of a dune. Klaus' getaway accommodates several floors and too many windows to count. The New England gables encompass each side to form perfect peaks. The top bedrooms are extended by railed balconies.

It is the kind of house she has always dreamed of for spending her summer vacation. Except now it kind of represents her worst nightmare.

"Well, Klaus doesn't spare any expense, huh?" she comments to the sandpiper at her side.

"Do you really expect an answer?" a voice says behind her and she gets up quickly, turning around and facing Stefan.

He sees her taking a worried glance towards the house. "Don't worry. Klaus went out and he won't be back for a while."

She relaxes a little bit at that.

"How are you?" he asks.

She shrugs. "Bored...I haven't seen you much."

He can hear the underlying reproach. "I know. I was just trying to protect you."

"I know you did. But it would have been nice to have someone to talk to."

He looks guilty. "Let's walk," he suggest.

Once the house is out of view, he starts talking. "Klaus doesn't know this, but I've been building this human blood tolerance over the past few months. Obviously what he gave me that night was way over my limit, but I would have done anything to save Damon."

"So you're saying that you can drink human blood and stay in control? You don't have to go back on the animal diet?"

"Probably not. You know, in the end, it's probably what I'm supposed to do. I tried to escape it but obviously it's more who I am than I thought." he says in a gloomy tone.

She stays silent for a moment before blurting out, "How many people did you kill since you left?"

He's taken aback but answers honestly, "Too many. You don't really want to know."

"No, I don't. What I want to know is how you feel about it."

He sighs. "When my emotions are off I don't care. It's actually very liberating. I hadn't feel this carefree in years."

Actually he had when he had that lapse last year, but he had been spending his time trying to hide it from Elena and Damon and it had been more exhausting than anything else.

"What happens when you turn it back on?" Caroline asks softly.

He smiles sadly. "Then it is pure, excruciating torture. But that was the only way if I didn't want to become a monster."

"You're not a monster, Stefan."

"I used to be, Care. I used to be much, much worse than Damon ever was."

He can see that she's doubtful, and he could scare her off by telling her some of the things he's done, but she is his best friend and the last person he wants to look at him with disgust and horror.

But then she suddenly stops and there is that look of horror on her face. Just not for the reasons he thinks.

"Wait...You used the past tense...you said 'it was the only way'...Are you planning on turning it off permanently? Is that why you didn't ask me once about Elena or even Damon?"

He tenses and looks away.

"Stefan!"

"Yes, that was the plan...until you showed up."

She can't believe her ears. "But why?"

He takes her by the shoulders. "The deal is ten years, Caroline. How am I supposed to hold that long if I keep a conscience? I hate it, but I don't exactly have a choice. If I don't go along, Klaus will kill everyone in Mystic Falls, he made that very clear. The reasons why he brought you here are proof enough of his sadistic ways."

She can hear the desperation and frustration in his voice and she takes his hand in hers, squeezing it. He squeezes it back and her heart aches for him, because he put himself in a situation that goes against everything he believes in and he has no way out. And he has no other option than turning back into that monster he spent years trying to bury, thinking that this is his fate and there's no point in fighting it anymore.

_The Hell he wont't fight,_ she thinks fiercely.

He smiles tentatively. "You know, it doesn't have to be that way for you. Give me some time, and I'll find a way to persuade Klaus to let you go. If I do exactly..."

"No!" she shakes her head vigorously. "Stefan, I'm not leaving you here. Don't even bother asking Klaus, because I'm not."

He's surprised but also immensely touched. He brings her hand to his mouth and kiss it lightly.

"Do you honestly thought I would leave you here?" she asks and he has to smile because she looks really offended.

"No, of course you wouldn't. You have the greatest heart I know, Caroline Forbes."

They start walking back hand in hand.

"It's going to be very hard," he warns her. "Probably unbearable at some time."

"I won't let you give up on your humanity, Stefan, and you'll help me keep holding on to mine. We're in this together now. We'll just have to be the best actors in the world if we want to fool Klaus," she adds with a slight laugh.

"I might have to be rude to you if we want to keep up appearances. For this to work we will have to switch it off every time we are with Klaus. Turning back our emotions on will get more and more challenging."

He tries to make her realize just how difficult and dangerous this will be, that her very life and morals will be put to the test. He would understand if she changed her mind.

But she just smiles and says, "Together."

A huge wave of affection overwhelms him and reminds him what a treasure this girl is and how lucky he is to have her in his life. He suddenly regrets not spending more time with her before all that mess. Everything was about Elena, and the curse and the sacrifice back then, and spending some time with Caroline would probably have done him a lot of good.

"God, I shouldn't but I'm so happy that you are here," he tells her, taking her cheek in his hand and planting a kiss on the other.

For a foolish moment she forgets everything but the fact that she's on a beautiful beach with Stefan Salvatore, that they are holding hands and he looks at her with something in his eyes that is close to adoration.

But then she witness the big house on the dune and sobers instantly. Stefan follows her gaze and let go of her hand. He hadn't realize how dangerously close to the house they were.

They walk back keeping a safe distance.

"So, do you want to know how are Elena and Damon?" she asks him with a teasing glint in her eyes.

He nods, smiling and she quickly fills him on what went on in Mystic Falls during his absence. She notices also that he doesn't seem particularly emotional each time she mentions Elena.

Once they start climbing the stairway, he tells her, "Ok, if Spike or Riley ask or report to Klaus, we'll say I followed you on the beach to make sure you didn't run away."

She acquiesces, feeling so much better now that she could talk to him and be reassured about his state of mind. She's actually happy that Klaus kidnapped her just in time for her to be able to save Stefan from himself.

That happiness comes crashing down when they enter the house to find Klaus in the foyer, obviously waiting for them.

"Well, that was such a lovely, touching little scene," he tells them with a malicious smile.

Caroline and Stefan realize with horror that he saw their exchange on the beach.

"And here you had been doing so well, Stefan. Tsk, tsk...such a pity, really."

He snaps his fingers and the minion called Riley appears, holding a glass full of a light yellow liquid.

"You must be really thirsty after this long walk, my dear Caroline. I insist that you have a drink."

Riley hands her the glass and she takes it, knowing fully well what's in it.

"Please no," Stefan says pleadingly. "We were just talking. Can't you be magnanimous just this once? I did everything you asked me!"

"Magnanimous? I'm sorry, that word is unknown to me. I'll have to look it up in the dictionary."

"It's ok Stefan. We were warned," Caroline intervenes, and under Stefan's helpless and horrified gaze, she brings the glass to her lips. The smell of vervain reaches her nose before the burning feeling explodes in her throat.

The glass shatters on the floor and she collapses, skinning her palms and knees and the pieces of glass, and because of the vervain it doesn't heal instantly. She coughs violently, feeling like her entrails will come out all at once.

"Good girl," Klaus says with a satisfied smile. "I'll see you both at dinner. Don't be late. We have lobster tonight."


	4. Chapter 4

**I want to thank my friend Heather for correcting this and helping me find the right words. **

**My thoughts are with her (and many more) on this very symbolic weekend.**

* * *

><p>In anticipation of Caroline's entrance, Stefan and Klaus are sitting at the dining room table when she appears. Their light conversation comes to an abrupt end when the two vampires turn to take in the vision before them.<p>

Stefan honestly didn't expect to see her, and even though his emotions are off he's very impressed by her bravery, especially how beautiful she looks in a pale blue dress that highlights her eyes.

"Good evening", she says as the two vampires rise from their chair. The only trace of the earlier event is the slight hoarseness of her voice.

"Dear Caroline, you look absolutely lovely. And you are right on time." Klaus says.

She addresses him a brilliant smile and Stefan almost chokes on his drink.

"Thank you. I didn't want to miss the lobster."

Stefan is sure he's seeing a hint of admiration in Klaus' eyes.

"Well, I have prepared a little appetizer for you, which I think you'll appreciate very much."

He nods to Spike who leaves the room and returns seconds later with a young man in his twenties. He's obviously compelled as he walks mechanically and embodies a blank stare.

Caroline understands immediately what Klaus expects from her, but she's not sure if his offer is genuine or if this is another, more refined form of torture.

Just in case it is one of those tests Stefan mentioned earlier, she forces a smile on her face again. "That's very thoughtful of you."

He makes a vague motion with his hand. "Don't mention it. Drink to your heart's content."

She approaches the young man, avoiding looking at his face. She really doesn't want to remember it later. She takes some gulps, just enough to hear his heartbeat slowing slightly, and for her to dissipate the lasting effects of the vervain. Then she withdraws her fangs.

She walks back to the dining table, intending to sit down, but Klaus stops her. "I think you misunderstand me, darling. When I said drink to your heart content, I meant drain him."

Realization dawns on her, and she crosses her arms to stop her hands from shaking.

"You mean kill him?" she asks although she perfectly knows what drain means.

"Drain, kill...tomato, tom_a_to," he replies with a feral grin.

So, this is a test after all.

She apparently takes too much time to 'appreciate' her gift, as she hears Stefan's voice.

"Come on, Caroline, what's the big deal? You did it to that guy at the carnival, remember. ? It's not exactly your first time."

"Don't upset her, Stefan," Klaus chides him. "Take your time my dear."

Her heart might not be beating but she could swear she can feel it galloping in her chest right now.

Like Stefan, she has no choice. She crosses his gaze and see the urgent request in his green eyes on his otherwise impassive face.

_Switch it off._

She takes a deep breath, closes her eyes and bares her fangs once again.

* * *

><p>Stefan is waiting in his room for Klaus to leave. Klaus ventures out almost every night, and sometimes Stefan has to accompany him. He knows then that when they will return there will be a few less innocent people walking this earth, and his body count pile will have grown a bit more.<p>

Not that he's counting. He stopped doing that a while ago in order to keep his sanity. Having no conscience also helped a lot, and he had come to the resolution that he had to stop caring indefinitely if he wanted to survive. The same warnings to persevere that he told Caroline.

_Caroline._

Her coming here had changed everything.

Yes he had been elated to see her, then horrified upon hearing Klaus' motives for bringing her. She was a ray of sunshine, lighting the darkness that has become his existence for 6 weeks. Then he had learned that every look, every touch on his part would be her ticket to horrible pain or torture.

Seeing her suffer because of him is unbearable.

Once he's sure Klaus is gone, he still hesitates. Every minute spent with Caroline is putting her at risk. But the need to see her is stronger. He has to know that she's ok.

He's always been feeling rather protective over the people he loves, but there's something different about his protectiveness towards Caroline. He's perfectly aware that as a vampire she's strong and she can take care of herself. But there's a part of him that would do anything to keep that brilliant smile on her face, and to make sure no sad thoughts are tarnishing the light in her eyes.

It's been a complete fail on his part so far.

He doesn't knock on her door, careful not to avoid attracting Riley's attention who is downstairs watching TV. He enters the room and locks the door.

Through the darkness he can see her figure lying on the bed. She changed into shorts and a tank top and she's lying on her side, on top of the cover.

For a moment he thinks that she's asleep, but she turns around and whispers, "Go away, Stefan, or he will hurt me again."

There's an flatness in her voice confirming what Stefan has been suspecting : her emotions are still turned off.

He sits on the bed next to her and put a caressing hand through her hair. "We're safe, or I wouldn't have risk it. I'll hear if the car comes back."

She doesn't really acknowledge that and moves back into her fetal position.

"Talk to me Caroline, please."

There's no way he's leaving her in that state of mind, so he waits patiently by her side.

Soon enough she turns around, looking him in the eyes. Only when she sees that his feelings are back on does she allows herself to do the same. Stefan knows exactly when that happens as tears are suddenly filling her eyes. He lie down next to her, taking her in his arms and pressing her body strongly against his, trying to convey as much care and comfort as he can.

"Shhh, I'm here. I'm right here."

He drops featherlight kisses on her head and temple while she cries silently.

She stops after a few minutes, taking some deep breaths before saying, "I'm fine. I'll be fine."

He nods but doesn't let go of her, giving the time to her body to relax and her breathing to get even. He keeps rubbing her back in soothing gestures.

He remembers his promise of never let anything happen to her, and all he can say is, "I'm so sorry Care."

"It's not your fault. We talked about it. I just need some time to get used to it," she replies, her voice low and muffled by his shirt.

_She needs some time to get used to killing people._

At that moment Stefan hates Klaus like he has never hated anyone else in his long life. If he can't be of any help to her during the day or in Klaus'presence, he swears he'll do anything to make time for her at any other moment. Klaus can't be on their back 24/7, right?

He hears a car passing by the house and doesn't wait to see if it Klaus coming back. He gets up quickly, even if having to let her go crushes his heart. He takes her face in his hands, looking intently into her eyes. He can't find the right words right now, but hopes she can read what's in his soul. She apparently does as she smiles softly. "Thank you, Stefan."

He drops a kiss on her cheek, at the corner of her mouth, before leaving the room silently.

When he is back in his room, he realizes that he needed this closeness as much as she did...if not more.

* * *

><p>Caroline has become dependent on her walks on the beach. For the last three weeks, those walks and the stolen moments with Stefan have been the only things keeping her from driving a stake through her heart.<p>

She closes her eyes and lets the white noise around her calm her mind. She lets the sound of the ocean and the cries of the seagulls stifle the cries and supplications of the last person she had to kill, just for Klaus' pleasure.

Stefan behaving now almost exactly like he wants him too, Klaus has decided that Caroline would accompany them on some of their...errands, which means find some campers or tourists, lure them in a dark place and draining them dry. Caroline has tried the feed & compulsion thing, but Klaus has been adamant that they had to go for the kill each and every time, whatever the gender, age or race.

No discrimination. Everybody dead.

Then Spike or Riley are the ones disposing of the bodies. Caroline doesn't really want to know what they do with them, so she never asks. Neither does Stefan.

Fortunately it's not always about murder and slaughter. With his money, his charm and probably a good dose of compulsion, Klaus has managed to get acquainted with some of the best families around. And they certainly know how to throw some lavish parties. So some evenings Caroline can put on a pretty dress, go have fun and dance with Stefan and try to forget she ate someone one hour before.

Being invited everywhere also allows Klaus to extend his feeding ground. If people keep disappearing only around their place, it would get suspicious rather quickly. And when he gets really...hungry, he goes all the way to Boston. Caroline hasn't gone yet, but Stefan did once, and when he came back that night he came into her room and cried in her arms.

She feels guilty in a way, because if not for her, Stefan would keep his emotions turned off and it pains her to see him go through that for her sake. He insists on switching them on almost every night and that she does the same.

It was very hard at first, but lately she has stopped crying. As a result of becoming more detached, Caroline has felt increasingly numb. And it's starting to worry her.

She's worried that feeding on people until they die is becoming normal to her.

That night she's awaken by the sound of the car's tires on the gravel. Less than twenty minutes later, Stefan sneaks into her room and locks the door before slipping next to her under the cover. They lay facing each other and he takes her hand, placing it against his cheek and keeping it there.

They don't necessarily talk, first because they try to be as quiet as possible, but mostly because they find all the solace they need in this silent intimacy that they would never thought they would share. They don't mention it, but their relationship has evolved very quickly into a very strong friendship, tainted with a tenderness and affection that obviously means something more.

Of course it could also be the extraordinary situation they are in that feeds those feelings, but deep down in her heart, Caroline knows it is not. At least not on her part.

They never talk about Elena, so she can't exactly know what's on Stefan's mind.

She looks at him, his eyes are closed but he keeps her hand strongly in his, squeezing it a little bit more than normal.

She just asks, "How many?"

He opens his eyes. "Three...one was a teenage girl."

With a sigh she scoots a bit closer and brings her other hand to his forehead, massaging his temple, caressing his hair, as if trying to erase all the negative thoughts housed in it.

"Stefan?"

"Mmm?"

"Aren't you scared that we're going to get used to this someday, even when our emotions will be on?"

He scans her face. "Why are you thinking that?"

She shrugs. "I don't know. I just thought, when I have killed like 200 people, will I really be bothered by number 201 ?"

"Do you trust me?" he asks her.

"Of course."

"Then don't worry. I won't ever let you feel that way. And I know you'll do the same for me. I killed many more than 200 people, Care, and I remember all of them. Not crying over each and everyone of them doesn't mean you become insensitive."

She nods but he can see she's not entirely convinced. It is so like Caroline to over think about stuff like that, and he doesn't want her to torment herself about things she has no control off.

"Please promise me you'll always talk to me when you feel that way."

"I promise."

"I should go back now," he says but doesn't make a move.

She smiles softly. "Do you want to?" and her husky voice sends shivers down his spine.

"No."

"Then stay."

He smiles back and they close their eyes. Hearing each other's breathing brings them a semblance of peace and within minutes they are asleep.

* * *

><p>Klaus is sitting downstairs in the salon, enjoying a glass of bourbon in front of the fireplace. A slight smile is playing on his face.<p>

At first he hesitated between kidnapping Elena Gilbert or Caroline Forbes. Kidnapping Elena would have definitely made a great impact on Stefan – but probably not the impact Klaus was trying to achieve.

He had observed Caroline for a moment, and the fact that she was a vampire had played in her favor, so to speak. That meant she was stronger and more resistant to torture. Poor frail Elena wouldn't have lasted 3 days.

But Caroline was also a fun, more lively and spirited girl, while he had always found Elena Gilbert boring and overly melodramatic. Caroline had been the right choice.

Of course, he had never expected to actually like the girl.

But since she was here Stefan had indeed gotten better, and even she had been a good sport, learning to control her emotions and not making a fuss each time she had to drain someone dry. Of course he has heard her cry the first few times, but she seems over it now.

Of course the fact that Stefan is sharing her bed every other night might help.

His smiles widens. Do those two lovebirds really think he doesn't know?

Of course he knows. But he doesn't really mind.

Right now they are comforting each other, but soon this way of life will become completely natural to them, Klaus is sure of it. It is in their nature after all.

And if they want to add a little romance on the mix, who is he to stand in the way? Who said that you couldn't slaughter people and be in love at the same time ?

Obviously he will have to confront them about it, and he will probably punish Caroline, just for the principle.

Just not as severely as usual.


	5. Chapter 5

**So, how awesome was the premiere ? I hope my Stefan & Klaus won't suffer from comparisons with the 'real' ones on the show ;o)**

**A big thanks to my sweet Heather for the corrections, as usual.**

* * *

><p>The next morning they both come down, at a 15 minutes interval so their togetherness does not arise suspicions.<p>

When Caroline arrives at the breakfast table, she greets the two men and helps herself to a cup of coffee.

Klaus observes them with an amused smile, noticing how carefully they avoid looking at each other.

"So, you two are sleeping together?" he asks casually, like he was inquiring about the weather.

Caroline's coffee cup ends up brutally on the table, spilling its content all over the tablecloth. She rises and tries to minimize the damage with her napkin.

She finally looks at Stefan, who remains surprisingly calm. After eating a bite of his pancake, he tells Klaus, "You never set any rules about meaningless sex."

Klaus looks genuinely surprised for a minute then bursts out laughing. "Is that so? How lax of me, then. Well, I guess it is too late, now."

Caroline relaxes a little bit since he doesn't seem particularly mad. He even looks quite entertained actually by the situation.

"Well," he says to Stefan, "You certainly got over the lovely Miss Gilbert fast. Not that I blame you, of course," he adds with an appreciative glance towards Caroline.

"Having meaningless sex with me doesn't mean he has gotten over Elena," replies Caroline with a detached tone, proud of herself for having regained her composure so quickly.

"And you're the one who brought Caroline here after all," Stefan says in a slightly arrogant tone that seems to please Klaus, even though he totally doesn't buy that cheap sex mindset, obviously.

"You two kids are smart asses. But I'll let it go for once."

Which is not entirely true, as that very night Caroline finds the curry sauce, the cou de grâce of the cod entrée tainted with vervain. The trace amount burns her mouth but she's able to spit it out quickly.

Ever the perfect host, Klaus has the plate replaced, promising that this one is intact. But Caroline has lost her appetite for the night.

* * *

><p>Elena walks the Mystic Grill and scans the room for Bonnie. When she texted her friend earlier, the witch told her to meet her there.<p>

She just didn't mention she was sitting with Damon.

Feeling slightly shocked, Elena watches them for a minute. They are laughing and talking, seemingly very comfortable with each other. So first Caroline, now Bonnie? It's like Damon is suddenly making friends with all the people he used to hate. Just so he can interact with them and doesn't have to talk to her.

If she's honest with herself, she has been avoiding him too. But why torture herself with her feelings for him when she knows he will never act on them as long as his brother is missing?

It's becoming more and more clear that Stefan won't be back for a long time. Even if Damon has all the time in the world, Elena doesn't.

She hasn't changed her mind about staying human.

She misses Stefan, but she can sense that her feelings towards him have changed. It's been two months and a half now, and even though her mind refused it at first, her heart has started to move on.

She realizes that, if Stefan ever does comes back, he will not be the same she knows and loves. Their relationship as they know it is definitely over. Instead of a possible future, there's just a big question mark. And the same quastion mark applies to Damon.

She's confused and more and more inclined to listen to that little voice telling her to forget about them both, at least romantically.

Bonnie has noticed her and waves in her direction. Elena approaches their table, deciding not to mention anything about this newfound friendship.

"Hey guys."

"Elena. Want something to drink?" Damon asks.

He leaves to get her order and once he is far enoug away Elena can't help herself but to throw in a comment. "Since when are you and Damon buddies?"

Bonnie laughs. "We're not buddies. We barely tolerate each other."

Damon turns around and smirks at the witch, and to Elena's astonishement, Bonnie smirks back.

They certainly seem to tolerate each other very well.

"When did that happen?"

"When I found something," replies Bonnie with a knowing look.

Elena catches her breath. "You mean..."

Bonnie nods before looking around.

"Do you still think he has someone to watch over us?" Elena asks upon seeing her friend's cautious glances.

"I won't play with Caroline and Stefan's lives, so let's pretend he has," Damon intervenes calmly, handing Elena her drink.

Bonnie has been typing on her phone and shows it to Elena.

_I found a plant that will help us kill Klaus. _

Elena reads and says, "But only if we find him, which we can't since he's threatened us not to by kidnapping Caroline."

"Exactly. That's the flaw in the plan."

She frowns. "There's a plan, now?"

Damon and Bonnie exchange a look. "Not really."

"So actually there's just one big flaw."

"Don't be so negative, Elena. As Bonnie very wisely told me, we at least have something. We just have to figure out how to use it. If you come up with a brilliant idea, don't hesitate to share."

"I will...I guess."

She looks between the two of them and feels like she's being left out of one big joke. Or maybe they are just drunk and there's no plant-that-kill-Klaus to begin with.

"Ok, so, uh...I have to go get Jeremy. Bonnie, I'll call you, ok?"

"Sure. Bye Elena."

Elena smiles at Damon who just replies with a curt nod.

"Well, that was awkward," Bonnie comments once Elena is gone.

Damon shrugs."We've kind of been avoiding each other, lately."

"Why?"

He gives her a knowing look and she understand immediately. "Oh."

She thinks about it for a moment before asking, "What will you do if Stefan comes back in ten years...or never?"

"Wow, Judgy, your optimism is definitely your greatest charm."

She raises an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you haven't thought about it."

He sighs. "Of course I did. Nothing I can do about it. End of story...which never really started anyway."

"Really ? Nothing?" Bonnie asks incredulously.

"She's my brother's girlfriend, Bonnie. My _brother_. I know your opinion of me is way below sea level, and I know I've been a gigantic dick to Stefan for decades. But I'm not going to steal his girl while he has to go on a murderous rampage with a lunatic hybrid to save my life."

She smiles appreciatively. "You sure have come a long way since you arrived here. So I can safely say you are above sea level now."

"Aawww, be still my heart. Oh wait, it's dead. You certainly wouldn't have sat at this table with me and had a drink, back then."

"No but neither would you. Besides, you were too busy with Caroline," she reminds him slyly.

He winces. "Thanks so much for bringing that up."

"You're welcome. It's what 'buddies' are for," she replies, making quotations marks with her fingers.

"I worry about her, you know," he confesses to her surprise. "I know that Stefan can somehow find a way to handle things, but Caroline..."

He doesn't finish his sentence but Bonnie understands because she feels the same way.

"I'm' sure Stefan is taking good care of her," she tells him, only half-convinced but trying to reassure them both.

He looks at his watch. "I have to go. We still have to come up with a plan. It's too bad we are not really buddies," he tells her with a lopsided smile.

"Yeah, we obviously can't meet here again to discuss it over dinner."

"Ok, so I won't meet you here tomorrow, let's say around 7.00 pm?"

She smiles. "I definitely won't be here."

* * *

><p>It has been raining all morning, but the sun has timidly started shining again, and the now blue sky promises a nice afternoon.<p>

Caroline is sitting on the swing hanging on the front balcony, reading a magazine. This is one of her favorite places, as it has a breathtaking view overlooking the beach and the Nantucket Sound.

Stefan is sitting in a chair nearby, reading a book, and they share a comfortable silence.

It's moments like this that makes the rest almost bearable.

Klaus comes out of the house. "Finally, it stopped raining," he comments. "I was starting to think that Caroline here would be our only ray of sunshine for the day."

Stefan rolls his eyes but Caroline smiles. Sometimes she thinks that Klaus can be the most charming, irresistible guy with his cute accent and handsome looks.

Too bad he's also an evil, murderous werewolf-vampire psychopath.

"Why don't you two 'friends with benefits' go into town this afternoon? Wouldn't you want to have a new gown for tonight's party, Darling?" he asks Caroline and she can't help but laugh.

"I have at least five in my bedroom upstairs that I haven't worn yet. I don't need another dress."

"Really?" asks Stefan with a mocking grin. "You don't _need_ another dress?"

She laughs good naturedly. "Ok, if you both insist..."

"You go with her, Stefan," orders Klaus.

Stefan looks skeptical. "Last time Caroline and I went on a stroll you had her drink vervain, so I don't think so."

"Ah, but you've been a good boy, Stefan. Besides, it can't be torture and mayhem all the time, right ? It would take the fun out of it." He hands his credit card to Caroline. "Go ahead, sweetheart, and don't forget that blue is your color."

He walks back into the house, leaving Caroline and Stefan quite baffled. But since they have permission, they certainly don't need to be told twice.

Spike drops them off in Chatham and its ever busy town center. Caroline is not going to buy a dress, but she certainly is going to enjoy that time with Stefan.

"I really didn't expect that," she tells him.

"Me neither. It is finally revealed that Klaus is in fact a big romantic at heart."

She laughs again and it warms his heart to hear her. He's been so worried about her, lately, as it seems that her spirits are more and more down, and it definitely looks like she was falling into some kind of depression. But then there are days like this where she seems alright.

He takes her hand in his and interlaces their fingers. This has become a very natural gesture for both of them, that started as a comforting touch, but is now almost a necessity.

It's what makes Caroline forget for a moment about that hole in her chest that grows everyday and after each person she kills. That numb feeling is still there, but she doesn't want Stefan to be concerned so she doesn't mention it if he doesn't specifically ask.

"You know, I think he just likes to play with us. Like a hot/cold thing, messing with our minds. Now he gives me his credit card but tomorrow he'll be spanking me with vervain-soaked ropes."

"That's not funny, Care." Stefan reproaches her.

"I know, sorry. Let's go eat some clams!"

After lunch they decide to go for a walk on the beach. The place is crowded and Caroline tries very hard not to think that she might be forced to kill one of these people tomorrow or the next day. To distract her mind she asks the first thing that crosses it – although it is far from an innocent question.

"Do you ever think about Elena?"

Stefan's a bit startled but answers nonetheless. "Sometimes...A lot at the beginning, when I still thought I could find a way to escape..but not so much lately."

_Not at all since you arrived,_ he adds mentally, before continuing, "She feels like she belongs in another lifetime, you know? Even if I go back now, things would never be the same."

She notices that there's no sadness in his voice, mostly acceptance.

"I miss Damon, though," he chuckles. "Who would have thought?"

"I miss him too...he is so desperate to find you."

Stefan shook his hand. "They certainly won't find us now. Klaus left a note threatening to kill you if they keep looking."

"Wow, Damon must have been really pissed at that. Knowing him, he'll never completely stop looking, though."

"As long as it doesn't get you or him killed..."Stefan replies pensively.

"I wish we could let them know that we are ok."

Stefan stops and scrutinizes her. "Are we?" he asks, and she gives him a sad smile.

"I am when you are with me. What about you?"

He looks away for a moment before focusing back on her face. "If we weren't able to spend these moments together, I would probably go on a murderous rampage that would make Klaus immensely proud," he admits.

She doesn't answer because she doesn't trust her voice and doesn't want to get all emotional on him, but his admission touches her deeply.

He let go of her hand and put his arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer. She encircles his waist with her arm and they resume walking like this, comfortably wrapped in each other.


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you all for the great reviews last week ! I hope this chapter keeps up with your expectations ;o)**

**Thank you to my darling Heather as usual.**

* * *

><p>That night they are invited to a house even bigger than Klaus'. Caroline didn't think it was possible. Klaus tells them that the family is associated to the Kennedy's.<p>

There's at least 40 people, but Caroline doesn't feel intimidated. She has been to enough parties to the Lockwood mansion to feel right at home. It actually gives her a small sense of normalcy to the craziness that has become her life. And besides, she knows she looks stunning in a dark blue dress and sparkling earrings.

Stefan seems to think so too, as he hasn't left her side since they arrived, a possessive hand placed on her lower back, holding her close by. Caroline can't help but wonder if Klaus will make her pay for it, but in that moment she's too happy to care.

Stefan has to reluctantly leave her side when Klaus want to introduce him to some people, but Caroline doesn't stay alone very long and is quickly surrounded by a small group.

One man in particular is rather insisting.

He's good looking with blond hair and hazelnut eyes, and when he asks Caroline to dance she can't find a reason to refuse.

But she must have given him the wrong signals by not refusing him but after the music ends, her dance partner clings a bit too aggressively. She tries to find a way to let him down gently. God knows she has been let down enough times to know it doesn't have to be mean.

So she casually mentions Stefan, implying he's her boyfriend and she can see that the guy is obviously disappointed. But he doesn't comprehend this as his cue to leave.

Fortunately Stefan appears at that moment. "Have a dance with me, my sweet?" he asks, having obviously heard her little fib, and she smiles gratefully and takes his hand.

He leads her to the improvised dance floor in the middle of the big living room and encircles her in his arms, pressing her against himself a little bit more than propriety allows at that kind of party. She puts her arms around his neck and her face against his shoulder.

He smells so good, and she closes her eyes, reveling in the fact that she is in his arms. Caroline tries to block everything that is not the feel of his hand on her back, or his chest against hers.

"Did I tell you how beautiful you look?" he whispers in her ear and she shivers slightly.

"Actually, no you didn't," she tells him with a flirty smile.

He smiles back, plunging his green eyes into hers. "Well you are. But I bet a lot of guys are teling you that tonight...starting with that one over there," he says, making a gesture with his head to the blond guy, who is actually a few feet away from them, and still watching her.

And is that jealousy in Stefan's voice ?

"I tried to let him down easy by telling him you were my boyfriend but he doesn't seem to be easily discouraged."

"Or maybe he needs a bigger hint," Stefan says and before she has the time to react his mouth is on hers.

He stops dancing to kiss her, and brings his hand to her cheek. The kiss is more tender than really passionate, but it is enough to shake her to the core.

But she knew it. She knew that kissing Stefan Salvatore would be nothing short of awesome. And it is not even a real kiss yet.

She has barely registered the taste of his lips when Stefanpulls away and the moment is over. He looks at her for a moment, obviously shaken up himself. He clears his throat.

"There. Hopefully now he knows he can go f..."

"Stefan!"

She laughs, both shocked by his language and thrilled by his kiss, even though it kind of was for show. But was it, really? Because what she reads in his eyes right now is powerful enough to make her legs tremble.

They resume dancing and she puts her head on his shoulder again and he rests his cheek on the crown of her hair.

"Nice little show," Klaus comments when he joins them moments later.

"She had a stalker," Stefan replies coldly, and Caroline rolls her eyes.

"He wasn't a stalker, he was just a bit clingy, that's all."

"Want me to kill him for you, my darling?" Klaus asks her.

"That won't be necessary, but thank you," she says, hoping he will leave it at that. She doesn't want to ruin the magic of the evening by talking about killing yet another unsuspecting person just because.

Fortunately Klaus doesn't insist and soon they are heading home. Klaus bids them both goodnight and retires to his room.

"Do you want me to stay with you tonight?"

Generally they only share her or his bed when they need comfort, after a killing spree or a particularly difficult day. So she's a bit surprised – and delighted – that he offers, and even more that he seems really eager for her to say yes.

She smiles softly. "I'd love...not to be alone tonight."

He nods and goes back to his room to change. When he comes back, she can't help but mull over the fact that she just asked Elena's boyfriend to share her bed. Then she remembers that it is far from the first time after all, and Stefan himself told her that he doesn't really consider Elena his girlfriend anymore.

And then she's nervous for a second, because she doesn't know what he expects from her and if it is something more, she's definitely not ready for it. Besides, if she ever has a first time with Stefan, she doesn't want to be under the same roof as Klaus when it happens.

But he just lies down beside her, leaning his head on his hand and watching her with that look that gives butterflies to her stomach.

"Did you have fun tonight?" he asks while gently caressing the contour of her face with his fingertips.

"I did. You?"

"Yes."

She takes a breath before saying, "That kiss was nice."

Stefan smiles and nods imperceptibly. "Very nice."

It's all the encouragement he needs, apparently, as his lips slowly descend to meet hers, and she quivers at the sweet tenderness of his kiss.

He makes sure not to bring their bodies too close, as he's aware this is too soon to go any further, at least for the moment. She is in a vulnerable state and he would feel like taking advantage of her if anything happened now. Besides he enjoys this slow evolution of the sentiments between them, reminding him a bit of the way he used to court back in the 1860's.

He gently breaks the kiss and settles down beside her, putting his arm around her midriff, bringing her close to him. She smiles happily and at that moment Stefan thinks that things will get better eventually.

* * *

><p>Unfortunately he's already proven wrong less than 48 hours later.<p>

When Caroline comes down that morning Rilley lets her know that Stefan and Klaus already went out. She helps herself to a cup of coffee and takes the local morning newspaper to go sit down on the swing.

A picture on the second page immediately attracts her attention. It's the blond guy from the party. With a growing unease, she reads the article mentioning how he died in a car crash as he was driving back home. He apparently fell asleep at the wheel.

A sinking feeling twists her stomach. The man didn't fall asleep, she knows it. It wasn't an accident.

_Want me to kill him for you, my darling?_

Klaus' words resonate in her head and a sob escapes her throat.

That guy - and she realizes she doesn't even remember his name – is dead because of her.

* * *

><p>Stefan is standing in Caroline's room's threshold, watching her sleep. He has a grim expression on his face. He rose an hour ago but decided not to wake her up after the previous night's events.<p>

_They were in the woods, feeding on some tourists who had the bad idea of wandering there at night time._

_The woman Caroline was holding suddenly started to scream. Instead of plunging her fangs in her neck, Caroline shook her while yelling, "shut up!" and slapped her violently on the cheek. _

_When that didn't do the trick, she snapped her neck and let the woman's body drop on the ground._

_Everything went suddenly quiet. Stefan and Klaus stopped their own feeding and even Klaus looked mildly shocked at what had just happened._

_Stefan rushed to Caroline's side. She was just standing there, frozen. He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her a bit._

_"Caroline. Caroline, look at me."_

_There was no reaction at all on her part, so he took her face in his hands. "Turn it on, Care. Come on."_

_It was going to be horribly painful for her, but it was the only way to shake her out of that stupor. Normally when they did that they were in her room and they had each other for support. But here they were in the middle of the woods and Klaus was with them. Stefan couldn't really show any mercy or comfort without putting her at risk._

_"I can't" she whispered._

_"Why?"_

_"Because I never turned it off...Oh my God, Stefan !"_

_The amplitude of what she just did crashes down on her and her legs buckled under her. "I killed that woman, Stefan...I just killed her!"_

_Stefan could see she was on the verge of becoming hysterical, so he sent a pleading look to Klaus._

_"Can we go home, please? We're going to attract attention."_

_Klaus approached them. Caroline was shaking in Stefan's arms, not really crying but hiccuping and breathing heavily. Klaus looked her in the eyes. "I'm really proud of you my sweet. Now calm down. We're going home."_

_She instantly relaxed, and Stefan carried her bridal style. He was overwhelmed with such a terrible rage right now that he didn't trust himself to speak. Klaus will pay for this, one way or another._

A sensation of intense sickness and despair sweeps over him at the recent memory. If he doesn't do something, Caroline won't hold much longer. She's falling apart and he has to find a way to stop it.

_Run away._

For the first time, he seriously starts to consider it. And to hell with the consequences.

* * *

><p>"How is she doing?" Klaus asks when Stefan comes down.<p>

_Broken. Hollow._

"Still sleeping."

He's fighting very hard to not let his emotions be overwhelmed by anguish and anger, but he can't turn them off as long as Caroline is in that state.

"She'll get used to it," Klaus comments while handing Stefan a cup of coffee. "She's having a hard time right now because she's a very sensitive girl. What could we do to cheer her up?"

"Nothing!" Stefan exclaims, finally losing patience at Klaus's careless attitude. "There's nothing that could...except maybe sending her back to Mystic Falls, but even then..."

And he knows she wouldn't go back anyway. She has promised not to leave him, and she's so stubborn that even on the brink of insanity she will refuse to go.

God, he loves her so much for that.

"Come on Stefan, don't give me that emo nonsense again," Klaus says as Stefan's face can't help but betray his feelings. "I would hate to have to hurt our sweet Caroline in her present state."

One minute after he's against the wall and Stefan is holding him by the throat, all vamped out.

"You do that," Stefan seethes with barely controlled rage, "And I swear I'll find a way to put you down."

Klaus just chuckles. "Now, that's more like it. But please keep all that nice anger for later. I have something planned for us."

* * *

><p>The following days see Caroline alternate between not good and very bad. Stefan just watches helplessly as her mind shut off gradually, and her beautiful face holds no expression whatsoever. Her pretty blue eyes are a blank page.<p>

Then at some other times she seems ok, but not quite. Stefan, who's known her for a long time now, can see that behind the rarely smiling face, there's no light anymore. It's all about the facade, but it is nearly empty inside.

To make things worse, Klaus has sent Stefan away twice on his own this week, presumably on some reckon for their next feeding errand. But the younger vampire is more and more suspicious of the fact that Klaus likes Caroline a bit more than he expected...and that he might even be a tiny bit in love with her.

While Stefan can completely relate, he can't accept it. How long will it be before Klaus becomes conscious of this feelings – those human feelings he resents so much - and starts seeing Stefan as an obstacle?

Stefan chases that scary thought from his mind. Caroline and him won't be here long enough anymore to find out. Those lonely expeditions were certainly useful to prepare their escape.

When he comes back later that night and goes into Caroline's room, he doesn't find her in her bed but on the lounging chair on her balcony. When she hears him come in she gets up and runs into his arms. He puts his hand on her blonde mane and kisses her forehead.

"I'm so glad you're back," she whispers in his neck.

He stiffens. "Why? Did he do something to you?"

"No...he even tried to cheer me up, actually...he's creeping me out."

Stefan relaxes a bit, happy to hold her in his arms where she is safe for now. She seems better than she has seen her in days.

He takes her hand and leads her back on the balcony where he sits on the lounging chair and draws her to sit between his legs. She settles herself on the side and buries her face against his throat, enjoying the feel of his arms around her.

"What did you do tonight?" she asks softly, her voice barely a whisper.

"Pretended to do some reckon for Klaus...Finishing it as soon as possible so I could get back to you."

He hesitates for some time before deciding against telling her anything yet about their prospective escape. It might infuse her with some courage, but if for some reason it fails, Stefan is afraid that it will destroy her for good.

So he just caresses her arm, murmuring, "I'm going to take care of you, Caroline. I promise."

And that one he intends to keep.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks to Heather as usual. Enjoy and review if you liked it ! ;o)**

* * *

><p>When Klaus tells Stefan he has something prepared, he knows this is going to end badly.<p>

A gut feeling makes him go up to Caroline's room a few minutes before they leave.

"Did he say where we are going?" she asks him when he walks into the room.

"No. He said it was a surprise."

"I hate his surprises."

Stefan comes to her and takes her face in his hands. "You have to turn it off, Caroline. Can you do that for me? Please?"

She shakes her head, tears forming in her eyes. "I can't. I haven't been able for a while now. I think it's like, broken or something."

Stefan feels crushed. No wonder she's been feeling so horrible.

"If you want I'll tell Klaus you don't feel good."

"It's ok, Stefan. He won't buy it anyway. I can handle a few more killings..I guess."

She smiles at him, and seeing that brave smile on her face overwhelms him with tenderness. He brings her mouth to his and kisses her deeply. There's desperation in that kiss, but there's also a huge amount of love, a love that none of them can deny anymore. Stefan hadn't realized how hard he has fallen for her until now.

They are together until the very end, whatever it may be.

Too soon they have to let go, but he let his lips linger on hers for just a while longer before releasing her. It's almost physically painful for both of them.

"Let's go."

* * *

><p>They hide in the woods, watching a group of campers having fun around a fire. Their sweet closeness together and terms of endearment signaled just the family unit Klaus is looking for. The perfect idea for a night of fun.<p>

Slaughtering an entire family of 12 people.

Klaus points out to Stefan the only kid in the group, who' s about 12 years old.

"I thought Caroline could take him," Klaus tells him. "You know, to help her get back on things easily."

Right, because nothing would be more beneficial for Caroline than ripping out the throat of a young boy.

"No."

Stefan's word is final. Klaus looks at him.

"Why?"

"She's not stable enough. If you make her kill a child right now, she'll probably lose it."

"Careful, Stefan. When you talk like that, I'm inclined to think that your human feelings are back on and that you care too much about the girl."

"And you don't?" Stefan asks boldly, and Klaus smiles but avoid his gaze.

"Touché. Ok then. Who gets the kid?"

"I do," Stefan answers, even though it will crucify him since he has decided to leave his emotions on. If Caroline can't turn them off, then he won't either.

He closes his eyes for a minute, praying to make amends for all of this, to be able to forgive himself for everything.

He finds strength in the fact that in a little bit more than 24 hours, Caroline and him will be gone.

* * *

><p>The next day, Caroline doesn't come out of her room and Stefan feels like a lion in a cage.<p>

The way she reacted after last night's killing spree terrifies him. It's like she doesn't have any feelings at all. She is a cold, emotionless robot.

She still has that same attitude when she comes down later that evening, just before Klaus and Stefan are about to leave for a party. Stefan obviously has no desire to go, but he has no idea to justify wanting to stay with Caroline. So he hasn't said anything, telling himself that he would join her in her room afterward.

They are supposed to run away tonight. But for the moment he's the only who knows it.

He's really surprised to see her arrive then, all dolled up, sporting a fake smile that doesn't reach her eyes.

"I'm so happy you decided to join us, my darling," Klaus tells her while kissing her hand.

This time they are invited to a senator's home, and the evening starts fine enough. Stefan doesn't leave Caroline'side though, not really participating in any conversation but standing silently beside her, just in case.

Thanks to that, he knows the exact moment when she starts to crack.

Her speech suddenly becomes hesitant, and her hand searches his and squeezes it violently.

She's all smiles, but inside she's screaming for help.

He purposefully spills some of his champagne on her dress to get her out of the room as soon as possible. He chooses a small den situated as far as possible as the main room, and close the door behind him.

He leads her on the couch, kneeling down before her.

"Care? Care, look at me."

She's breathing rapidly now, but doesn't cry. She looks completely freaked out, grabbing his shoulders with a strength he didn't even know she possessed.

"Stefan...Stefan, I can't breathe!" and indeed, her previous short intakes of breath are non-existent now. "I can't breathe, Stefan," she repeats in a panicked tone.

He grabs her head, plunging her eyes into hers.

"You don't need to breathe, Caroline. Please, focus on me. You don't need to breathe!"

The words seem to penetrate her mind and she relaxes slightly, but the second after the tears come out and she starts trembling.

Stefan takes her in his arms and almost crushes her against his own body.

"Please, Care, you have to calm down. I can't stand to see you like this. You have to get it together, or there will be hell to pay. Please, I beg of you," he urges her.

Her shaking and sobs finally subside, and he lets her go. He takes her face back in his hands, whispering, "We're leaving tonight. I arranged everything." He presses a strong kiss on her lips before adding impulsively, "I love you."

He barely has the time to take a few steps back before Klaus walks into the room.

"Something wrong?" he asks, taking in the scene before him. Caroline is sitting on the couch, having obviously cried but seemingly calm now. Stefan is standing a few feet away from her, his arms folded on his chest, his face impassive.

"Caroline wasn't feeling well, I took her here to give her a few minutes to

recover," he tells Klaus in his best I-couldn't-care-less tone.

Caroline stands up, smoothing her dress with her hand. "I'm fine now", she tells the two men, and if it weren't for the faint trace of tears on her cheeks, no one could tell she just had a panic attack.

"Stefan, you need to stop smothering her. You're not her bodyguard," Klaus says, and if his tone is even, Stefan still detect the slight warning underneath.

"Yes, Stefan, you really need to stop fussing, I'm perfectly alright," Caroline adds, and she walks to Klaus, putting her hand on the older vampire's arm. "Shall we go back to the party?" she asks him with a sweet smile and he complies with an obvious pleasure.

He might be a thousand years old, but he's still a man.

Just before they leave the room, Caroline turns slightly around and send Stefan a look, making him understand that she registered his earlier words.

She's ready to leave.

And she loves him too.

* * *

><p>Damon comes out of the shower as his cell phone rings. The caller's id flashes Bonnie's name.<p>

"Salvatore's House of Perdition," he answers.

"I have the merchandise," she tells him without preamble.

"Aw, come on, Bonnie. You know I don't do drugs, and neither should you."

He can practically hear her rolling her eyes on the other side of the line.

"You know, I didn't specifically ask, but it can be as deadly on a normal vampire, for all I know. Any idea of whom I could use as a guinea pig?" she asks.

He laughs. "Very scary, Sabrina. Just tell me, how much did it cost me? An arm and a leg?"

"And all your other limbs."

"Better be worth it then. Can you bring it to the house tonight? I'll make dinner."

"Ok. I..." There's a silence then she asks, "It's not like a date or anything, right?"

"A what? A date ? Over my dead body! Uh, no, make that yours instead. Besides, you're still dating Gilbert, right?"

"Yes. Yes I am." He doesn't miss the hesitation in her voice

"Try once more, with less feelings, Bennett. Trouble in paradise?"

"None of your business," she pulls herself together. "I'll be there at 7.30. Make sure it's edible."

Damon hangs up and drops the phone on the bed, smirking.

Then he wonders why he's suddenly so interested in Bonnie Bennett's love life.

* * *

><p>Caroline wakes up slowly. Her eyelids flutters open, and it takes her a few seconds to realize where she is.<p>

A moving car. Stefan is driving.

She remembers.

She remembers he came into her room during the night.

She remembers they silently walked out of the house, hoping not to get caught.

She remembers how the adrenaline cursed through her veins when they reached the car that Stefan has secretly rented.

And then they were gone.

Stefan sees that she's awake and smiles. His right hand let go of the wheel to caress her cheek.

"How are you feeling?" he asks her tenderly.

"I'm ok. Where are we?"

"Pennsylvania. I'm thinking of driving another two hours then stop and relax. Find a hotel. Is that ok with you?"

Stefan is aware that they could perfectly drive back to Mystic Falls straight away, even if it is an eleven hours trip. But he wants to spend a few more hours alone with her before having to face their life back in Virginia. Face Elena, Damon, and what will certainly be the consequences of their escape.

"That's fine with me," she tells him with a smile. She obviously have the same feelings.

There's a light in her eyes and a hint of rose on her cheeks that he hasn't seen in weeks.

"Are we free?" she asks him.

He doesn't want to spoil it for her. Right now she just knows that they are away from Klaus. She has yet to realize exactly what that is going to imply in a near future.

"Yes. We are free."

_For now._

When Stefan comes out of their hotel room's bathroom that evening, Caroline is sitting on the bed watching TV.

"You know, I just realized that we barely watched any TV for weeks. I didn't even miss it."

He climbs on the bed behind her and start massaging her shoulders. She moans and forget all about the TV.

She turns around and faces, him, plunging her eyes into his green ones.

"Did you mean it?" she asks, and he knows immediately what she's referring to.

He answers without hesitation. "Yes. I love you, Care."

Her face breaks into a wide, open smile. "I love you too, Stefan."

And they kiss. A real kiss this time, not one for show or one to calm her down. A deep, loving kiss.

His tongue traces the soft fullness of her lips before exploring the recesses of her mouth. She gives herself freely to the passion of it.

When he breaks the kiss, they are both out of breath. Caroline can't help but have her insecurities crawling back insidiously. "How do we know we'll still feel this way when we get back in Mystic Falls?"

Stefan looks at her intently, caressing her cheek. "I know I want to be with you. And no one else."

She nods. She really doesn't want to bring Elena's name between them right now. Besides, she trusts Stefan to do the right thing once they are back.

She just can't quite grasp the fact that Stefan Salvatore is hers now. That is, until Klaus comes barging back into their lives with a vengeance.

Stefan seems to read her thoughts. "I'll call Damon later, let him know we're on our way back, and that he should be prepared."

"That's going to cause him a shock. It's a good thing vampires can't have heart attacks."

Stefan chuckles, happy to know he will soon hear his brother's voice and see his face. It eases down his worries about Klaus a bit.

Of course the beautiful blonde in his arm doesn't hurt either. He shakes his head, wondering why he's been so blind to how incredible she was. The friendship they had formed, his constant protectiveness towards her should have alerted him that there were much deeper feelings buried deep inside.

He had been so wrapped up in all the Elena drama that he had never take the time to really discover the treasure of a girl that was just under his nose.

In a twisted way, he has Klaus to thank for that. The irony isn't lost on him.

His mouth covers hers for another soul searing kiss, and they both lie down on the bed, their hands exploring each other, their legs intertwining. Caroline puts her arms around his neck, pressing her body into his, completely intoxicated by his touch on her skin.

He finds the strength to pull out for a second.

"Care, maybe we should stop. You are..."

"Stop?" she cuts him short with a loving smile. "You're kidding, right? I'm not stopping, Stefan. Deal with it."

He answers with a happy laugh that is quickly shut off by her hungry mouth.

* * *

><p>"Do you need anything else?" Spike asks Klaus.<p>

"No. Thank you."

Klaus is standing in front of the window, distractingly looking at the beach, bathed in a magnificent sunset light.

That same beach where Caroline loves to go for walks.

He can't believe they are gone, just like that.

He can't believe that his plan completely backfired on him.

But he accept that the fault is partly his.

He has made the mistake to like Stefan. He has made the mistake of letting Caroline into his dead heart, and allows himself to wake up feelings he hasn't felt in centuries.

He should have seen it coming, though. Both of them were too disgustingly soft-hearted to accept that way of life. Maybe if he hadn't bring in Caroline, Stefan would have give in eventually. It was in his deepest nature after all.

But Klaus had honestly believed that he would still be too wrapped up in Elena Gilbert to move on so quickly to Caroline.

And yet he couldn't find it in himself to blame Stefan for that.

The house looks dark and gloomy now that _she_ is gone.

He can't describe what he feels, and he hates that. He's not supposed to _feel. _But he can recognize sadness, anger, betrayal and the worst of them all : heartbreak.

A part of him just want to let them be. A part of him want to follow them and tear their hearts out of their chest. He has to steel himself to consider the second option and stifle the first one.

He's giving himself a few days before deciding what to do.


	8. Chapter 8

**Anyone else wants to slap Damon for what he did to Alaric ? I do ;o)**

**My dearest friend Heather is sick, so this chapter has not been corrected. I apologize in advance for any grammatical error or weird turn of phrases ;o)**

**Thanks for R&R ;o) **

* * *

><p>"Hello?"<p>

"Hi Damon."

A silence, then a suspicious, "Who is this?"

Stefan smiles. "Come on. I know it's been a few months, but you didn't already forget all about your little brother, right?"

"If this is a joke, I swear..."

"It's not a joke, Damon. It's me. I promise."

There's another short silence while Damon processes the news. "Where are you?"

"In Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. We'll be in Mystic Falls in a few hours."

"By 'we', I hope you mean you & Caroline."

"Yes. We...we escaped, Damon. I just wanted to give you the heads up. I don't know what Klaus will do next."

"Wow...I really...I didn't expect that," and Stefan laughs at his brother's unusual lack of witty repartee.

"How are you? How's Caroline?" Damon asks, clearly excited now.

"I'm ok. Caroline...not so much. I'll tell you about it when we're back."

"Ok. Can I talk to her?"

"She was still sleeping when I left the room. Hold on."

He walks back into the hotel room where Caroline is just waking up, and hands her the phone.

"Damon wants to talk to you."

She takes the phone with a smile. "Hey Damon!"

"Hey Barbie. How are you?"

Out of the blue she just starts crying and Damon panicks. "Hey, hey, what did I just say?"

Stefan is instantly on the bed next to her and she laughs through her tears to reassure them both.

"I'm ok. It's just...It's great to hear your voice."

She hated that nickname – Barbie - so much in the beginning, and now it was like the best thing she ever heard.

"I hope my brother is treating you well."

"He's the best," she answers, and something in the softness of her tone alerts Damon.

He smirks. "I bet he is. See you in a few hours?"

"Definitely."

She gives back the phone to Stefan.

"Please be careful, Damon. I don't know what might happen." He hesitates before adding, "I'm sorry we put you all at risk...but we couldn't stay anymore."

"Don't worry Stef. You did the right thing. I'll be home waiting for the two of you."

"Ok. See you soon."

Stefan hangs up before crawling back into the bed with Caroline, taking her in his arms and putting a passionate kiss on her lips. He has wiped away all her securities the night before and proved her, with his body and his hands, how much he loves her.

Five times.

Vampire stamina is awesome.

She smiles at a certain memory and he asks, happy to see her face illuminated like that, "What?"

"I wonder what happened to 'You and me, Caroline, never gonna happen ?"

He laughs, remembering that party in the woods. "Yeah, I was young and stupid. And blind."

"And there was Elena," she adds, but there's no jealousy in her voice.

He sighs. "I'll have to talk to her. I don't know how to make her understand...It won't be easy."

"I'm afraid she probably won't talk to me after that," Caroline speculates with a sad smile.

"We'll tell her what you've been through...she's a smart girl, she'll understand."

She brings him against her, kissing him, her hands caressing his back from his shoulder blades to his bottom, still marveling at the fact that she can.

Stefan finally breaks the kiss, whispering against her mouth, "As much as I'd love to stay in bed with you all day, how about we go home?"

She smiles, savoring the taste of his lips in one last toe-curling kiss.

"Let's go."

* * *

><p>Damon has called Bonnie immediately after hanging up with Stefan, so she's at the boarding house when he and Caroline arrive. He has also called Alaric and asked him to keep an eye on the Gilbert household, but he hasn't tell Elena yet. He figures Stefan will want to do it himself.<p>

Bonnie and Caroline fall into each others arms, and the brothers share an awkward hug, although a sincere one.

They move to the library, Stefan explaining how they got away but not going into much details about what happened during all these weeks. He'll share that later with Damon when they are alone.

Damon and Bonnie have news of their own and tell them the about the plant that Bonnie found.

"How do we know it's going to work?" Stefan asks.

"Considering the sources are the Witches...they were never wrong before."

Stefan nods, thinking about this for a minute.

"So?" Damon asks, a bit impatiently. "When do we leave to go kick his ass?"

"You are not going anywhere, Damon. Klaus will kill you in a heartbeat. Wait before I tell you what he did to Caroline...and he actually liked her."

"But..."

"You're not going, and it's final, Damon."

They are all a bit surprises by Stefan's assertiveness, and Damon is so impressed that he doesn't think of protesting.

Bonnie stands up. "I have to go. I'll let you talk things through. Let me know what you decide, ok?"

She hugs Caroline and Stefan, and Damon walks her out. They both can hear them talking for a minute, and Damon even laughs sightly - a genuine laugh, not a sarcastic one.

Stefan and Caroline exchange an amused look. "Sounds like some things happened here when we were gone," Caroline whispers with a smile.

When Damon comes back, he asks Caroline, "Do you want to call your mom?"

"I was thinking of going home later and see her..."she starts but both men interrupt her.

"No!" and she can't help but laugh at their perfect synchronicity.

"You're not leaving our sight as long as Klaus is out there," Damon says and Stefan adds, "We'll call her and ask her to come over."

Caroline agrees promptly, as she doesn't want to leave the safety of the boarding house and Damon and Stefan's presence.

Damon sits back in the couch. "So, about this plant...any idea how we'll put it to good use?"

Stefan shrugs. "I have to go back and find a way to have Klaus drink it."

Damon's not sure he heard his brother right, but one look at Caroline's quickly decomposing face confirms it.

"Stefan, no!" she cries and her earlier light tone is now full of anguish.

Damon doesn't recall ever seeing such a desperate look on her face, not even after she had been newly turned and couldn't really cope with it.

Stefan sits beside her and put his arm around her shoulders and his hand on her cheek.

"Think about it, Care. This could be over for good."

"Or he will be so mad that he will kill you right then and there," she responds in a plaintive tone.

"I have to take that chance, Caroline. For us," he adds in a lower voice even though he knows that Damon can perfectly hear them.

The older vampire is really torn about this. His first instinct is to tell his little brother not to go, and wait for Klaus to manifest himself. This way they'll deal with it together. But deep down he knows it would be suicidal.

Obviously Stefan wants to deal with this on his own and nothing will change his mind.

"Please tell me that it wasn't your plan all along, dropping me here to protect me and go back to Klaus?" Caroline asks him pleadingly.

"It's not, I promise. I wouldn't go back if we had another option. But it might be worth it in the end if we get rid of him once and for all."

She nods, even though she dreads the idea of Stefan leaving. But he will do it anyway, to protect them. To give her the peace of mind she has lost.

He kisses her on the cheek, next to her ear, where he murmurs, "I love you," and she buries her face in his shoulder, not paying attention to Damon's extremely surprised face. When talking to her on the phone, he had guessed that something had happened between the two of them but he had certainly didn't expect..._that._

"Tell you what : I'll call your mom and she can have dinner with us tonight, ok?" he tells Caroline to help her focus on happier thoughts.

She smiles gratefully. "Thanks Damon. I'll think I'll go take a shower if that's ok with you guys."

"Sure. You can use my bathroom," Damon offers and she leaves after a last kiss to Stefan.

Once she is gone, Damon can't help but smirk. "Can I be there when you tell Elena?"

Stefan sighs. "That is, if I get the chance to tell Elena."

Damon loses his smile. "Don't say that, Stefan, or I swear I'll come with you, no matter what you say."

"You can't come with me. I need you to watch over Care when I'm gone. She's going to need you. I don't know if she can feed on someone and stop herself in her current state of mind."

"Yeah, about that...I really thought I would have to put you in the cell downstairs. I had it redecorated and all."

Stefan smiles and said, "I was on a human blood diet before leaving with Klaus," and upon seeing his brother's startled face he adds, "I didn't even tell Elena. I started with her but then she didn't know I was taking more and more. I know you would be on my back about it, and I wanted to deal with this on my own. It was hard with Klaus, at first, and at some point I really felt like giving in. Then Caroline arrived, and from then all I could think of was to protect her, and it made me forget about my own blood lust. And now...I'm fine."

Damon looks at his brother, feeling both happy and sad for him. Happy that he can finally be on a 'healthy' diet. Sad because despite Stefan's casual attitude, Damon can see that there are deep scars from what he experienced, and they are far from even starting to heal.

Stefan takes out his phone.

"I should send a text to Klaus. Make him think I just dropped Caroline and I'm coming back. He might reconsider coming here, assuming he hasn't left yet."

"It's worth a shot," Damon shrugs, before eyeing his brother's phone. "Hey, did you have your phone all this time? Why didn't you let us know where you were?" he says angrily to Stefan, thinking of all the means they deployed to try and track him.

Stefan gives him a knowing look. "Because you would have rushed in like the crazy head that you are, and you would have been dead the next minute."

Damon can't really deny that, so he just says, "But you could have just tell us you were ok, then."

Stefan smiles sadly. "We were not ok, Damon."

"I need to know what happened, Stefan. I want to know what this bastard did to you and Care."

Stefan has never heard Damon use that nickname before, so he understands that while his older brother is playing it cool, he is deeply affected by the circumstances.

Especially as it was him being bitten that has started this whole thing in the first place.

"None of this was your fault, Damon," Stefan says softly, before adding, "Ok, the text is sent."

"What did you tell him?" Damon asks, curious.

"That Caroline had a major breakdown and I decided to bring her back to Mystic Falls before she did something that we would all regret. I told him I would be back in two days."

Klaus answered the next minute.

"He's asking if I want him to send me the jet," he updates Damon, before typing, _No thanks, have to bring back the rental car_. Klaus answer was, _ok, see you in two days._

"You think it worked?"

Stefan shakes his head. "I don't know. I might find him waiting for me with an ax...in any case, I probably bought us some time."

He puts his phone away, turning his head to the stairs.

"Caroline is coming down. I'll tell you more when we're alone, ok?"

The blonde vampire arrives just as her mom rings the doorbell, and their reunion is very emotional. Liz has truly thought at some point that she would never see her daughter again, especially after Damon had told her that they were abandoning the researches for both Stefan and Caroline's safety.

Damon has not told her about the plant, though. The less people know right now, the better.

The four of them have a nice dinner, and Stefan and Caroline talk a bit about their stay with Klaus although without getting into any real details. Caroline is not ready to talk about it and both Liz and Damon respect that. Stefan will tell him the whole story eventually, and it is maybe better if Liz doesn't know too much about what happened to her daughter. From what Damon can guess from the bribes he got from Stefan, and the haunted look in Caroline's eyes, it must have been quite an ordeal.

Damon really wishes he could kill the bastard with his own two hands, and make it painfully lasting.

Stefan convinces Liz to let Caroline stay momentarily at the boarding house. She's not too happy about it, but she understands that it's for her daughter'safety.

While Stefan walks her back to her car, Damon and Caroline go sit in front of the fireplace.

"Come on, what's with the long face, Blondie? You're home with us, now."

"I'm scared, Damon," she confesses.

"Don't worry. I mean, you've seen Stefan. He looks all bad ass and manly, now."

He finally extracts a smile from her. She smiles because she know he is as worried as she is but he's trying to cheer her up, in his own Damon way. A wave of affection rolls over her.

"He _is_ very manly," she agrees with a dreamy sigh and a teasing light in her eyes.

"Ok, stop right there. I don't want to know any more, you minx."

"Why not?" she asks with an innocent look. "You might learn a thing or two."

Damon laughs. "Tell you one thing, Barbie : Everything Stefan knows, he learned from me."

She sends him a fake shocked look. "That's disgusting, Damon."

Understanding what she implies, he protests, "What? No, not like that!"

Stefan comes back at that moment. "What's going on?"

"Your girlfriend here has a twisted mind," Damon says with an offended look that is betrayed by his lopsided smile.

"And your brother is gross," she replies with a cheeky look ,

Stefan shakes his head in amusement and joins them in front of the fireplace. Tomorrow he'll have to go back to Klaus and try to finish him once and for all.

In the meantime, he's with the two people he loves the most in this world, and he banishes every other thoughts from his mind.

* * *

><p>Caroline and Stefan spend that night making love, trying very hard not to feel like every kiss, every touch is a final goodbye.<p>

The next morning Damon tries once again to convince his brother to let him go with him, but Stefan doesn't budge. Damon pretends to sulk for a while, but when it's time for Stefan to leave, he gives him a real, brotherly hug.

"If you're not back in three days, you know I'll come anyway, right?" he asks his little brother and Stefan smiles.

"There's nothing I can do to stop you. But please watch Caroline's back."

Damon nods before leaving to get the two of them some privacy.

They embrace and stay that way for a while, feeling the other's body, breathing in each other'scent, committing every touch to memory. Stefan puts his hands on her cheeks, looking into her blue eyes, conveying as much love as possible with his own.

"You're the One, Care. Never forget that."

She smiles bravely. "I won't. I love you. I'll be here when you get back."

Because in her mind, 'if' is not an option. The alternative hurts too damn much to even be considered.

"Be careful," she tells him before he takes her mouth in a passionate kiss. Then he releases her abruptly and get out of the house without looking back.

If he does he won't be able to leave.

Once the car is gone, Caroline comes back in the den, letting tears run freely on her cheeks. She didn't want to upset Stefan by crying in front of him but now she can't hold it back anymore. Deep sobs are racking her insides.

She walks straight into Damon's arms, and he rocks her gently back and forth, kissing her forehead.

"Shhh..It's ok. I've got you. I'll take care of you."

* * *

><p><strong>AN : Next chapter : plenty of Damon & Caroline friendship goodness for those who like them ;o)**


	9. Chapter 9

**My dear Heather is back and kicking so this is in proper english again. Thanks to all my faithful readers, and most of all my faithful reviewers ! ;o)**

* * *

><p>Damon asks Bonnie to keep Elena away while Stefan is gone. He doesn't want to deal with another emotional reunion, and he doubts that Caroline wants to face Elena alone considering the circumstances. Besides, he's perfectly capable of taking care of Barbie all by himself.<p>

Or so he thinks.

They go to the Grill that night, and Caroline waste no time at getting...well, wasted. Damon suspects that she compelled her way through a few more shots behind his back.

He's asked to play some pool, but hesitates because he doesn't want to leave her side. But she presses him to go.

"It's fine, Damon. Go play. I'll be right here, in your line of sight anyway."

So he yields and goes to play, but not without glancing her way every once in a while.

After a while a guy comes sit next to her and they start chatting. He obviously is into her, but she's tipsy and doesn't pick up the signs. Besides, Stefan is all she has on her mind. What that guy doesn't know, is that if he sees Caroline as a potential good lay, she probably sees him a as potential good meal.

Damon recognizes that look on her face and decides it is time to intervene.

The guy puts his hands on her thigh, and it seems to suddenly wake her up. "Hey!" she starts with a frown.

"Time to go home, Barbie," Damon interrupts while taking her bag from the bar.

"Hey, dude, who do you think...?" the guy says angrily, but Damon faces him, looks him in the eyes and speaks in a low voice.

"Listen, _dude, _I'm actually doing you a huge favor here, so just shut up and forget about me and her, ok?"

The guy nods and leave, and Damon turns to Caroline. "Better keep you on a strict blood bag diet for a while, boozy. Can you walk?"

She giggles. "Of course!" she tells him but she stumbles as soon as she's out of the chair. With a sigh, Damon takes her in his arms and carries her back to the car.

"Thank you, Damon. You're my hero. You saved me from that creep."

"Actually I probably saved that poor bastard's life, but never mind."

While they are driving back home, she starts rambling about stuff and Damon has a hard time making sense of it all. Especially when she mentions lobster or vervain in curry sauce. She talks about Stefan a lot, and about Klaus several times. Damon is shocked because despite everything she doesn't seem to have any hatred for him.

He noticed the same thing with Stefan last night when his brother told him a bit more about their stay with the hybrid.

They both are obviously confused about their feelings. At times they seem to despise him for what he is and what he did to them, and at other times there's almost affection when they are relating certain events or memories.

Damon doesn't know if the Stockholm Syndrome applies to vampires, but it certainly looks that way.

* * *

><p>When Caroline wakes up the next morning, her head is pounding and there's a smirking black-haired, blue-eyed vampire sitting on her bed.<p>

She sits and puts a hand through her hair, sighing. "He's gone."

Damon nods. "He is. But he'll be back in 3 days."

"He'd better," she mumbles. She stays silent for a minute then asks, "Have you been watching me sleep? Because that's totally creepy."

His smiles grows wider.

"Nope, I've been patiently waiting for you to wake up. You and I, we're going on a road trip."

"What kind of road trip?" she asks suspiciously.

"The short kind. We'll be back tonight, don't worry. Come on, rise and shine, Blondie."

She pushes the covers away. "Ok, but I'll need a shower first."

"Well yeah, obviously," he answers, and ducks just in time to avoid the pillow she throws at him. "I'll be waiting for you downstairs. You have 15 minutes!"

And she comes down exactly 15 minutes later, looking bright and fresh. The weather is still nice, and she's wearing short pants, a light sweater and tennis shoes.

Once they are in the car, Damon tells her, "We have a few hours drive, so of you want to sleep some more, don't mind me."

"I'm fine right now.'

The drive is quiet for a while, then she asks, "I didn't kill anyone last night, did I?"

"No, you didn't."

She laughs slightly. "Maybe I'd better stay away from...living persons for a while."

"Don't worry. You'll get through this. Stefan and I will help you. It's not like you need to be locked up either."

She smiles, and they share some more small talks until she finally fall asleep again, rocked by the car's motion. Damon doesn't wake her up. He knows her exhaustion is partially emotional, and Stefan having to go back only makes things worse.

Caroline wakes up on her own when he stops the car.

"Where are we?" she asks, surprised at the view of the beach and the ocean in front of them.

"Virginia Beach. Stefan told me that you like long walks on the beach. Really, Barbie, you are such a cliché sometimes," he teases her before getting out of the car. She smiles and gets out too, trying not to think too much about her stay in Cape Cod. But the beauty of the place and her long promenades with Stefan are memories she can't help but cherish.

Damon takes a big towel and a picnic basket out of his trunk. They walk together to the beach, passing by the big Neptune statue. It's late morning on a week day so there are few people around, but they keep walking until they find a more secluded spot and sit down.

Damon brought some blood neatly hidden in thermos bottles and they have a few drinks while admiring the view.

"You know Klaus'house was amazing," she suddenly says without tearing her eyes from the ocean. "I've always dreamed of spending my holidays in that kind of place."

And just like that she finally opens up, which is what Damon had planned all along by bringing her there. He doesn't interrupt her, just put a comforting hand on her back when she starts crying. Tears are rolling down her cheeks but she keeps talking.

"You know when I arrived there, I really thought I could help Stefan, help him go through it all so it would be less hard for him. But I'm the one who ended up losing it, after like 4 weeks. I barely lasted a month. I totally failed him."

Damon scoots a bit closer and put his arm around her shoulders. "Hey, listen to me. You did not fail him, ok? You didn't. You saved him, Caroline. You're the reason Stefan remained himself all that time. Without you we probably would have lost him for good," he finishes fervently.

Her crying ease off a bit. "You think?"

"I know."

She smiles and he witnesses a change in her demeanor, as if suddenly a big weight has been lifted from her shoulders.

"I need him to come back," she says quietly. "I love him so much."

"Yeah, I kind of noticed...and heard too," Damon tells her with a smirk.

She turns her head to him, blushing. "Really?"

"Nah, I didn't. I was just teasing you."

She slaps him slightly on the arm and he grabs her hand, putting a kiss on it. "Are you feeling better?"

She nods, squeezing his hand and he continues, "Listen, this might sound stupid and an obvious thing to say, but you need to put this behind you. Yes, it will be hard, and it will still hurt for a few weeks, but Stefan will be here, and I'm here, as well as Bonnie, Elena, and as I said earlier we will help you through this."

He drops a kiss in her hair, and a few more tears come out, but this time they are of gratitude and love, and she quickly wipes them away. Without a word she rises on her knees and hugs him tightly. And even if Damon is not the effusive kind, his arm circles her waist and he hugs her back for a moment.

Their conversation is much lighter after that, and after spending a couple more hours on the beach, they decide to go back to Mystic Falls.

She takes his arm while walking back and he doesn't protest, even when she starts talking to him about Elena.

"Why does everyone seem to think that Elena and I would hook up as soon as Stefan was gone? That would have been a really shitty thing to do. The last few weeks I barely spent any time with her anyway."

"No, apparently you spent all your free time with Bonnie," Caroline says mischievously.

He glares at her. "Not _all_ my time, and besides we were trying to come up with a plan. A big epic fail, might I add. But she hasn't given me any aneurism for a while, so I guess she's not that bad," he ends in his best indifferent tone.

Caroline starts to laugh. "Awww, you totally like her!"

Damon denies vehemently, but it only make her tease him more.

She smiles all the way back home, and Damon is content to be able to help her feel a bit better, even if he knows she won't be perfectly happy until Stefan is back. He is deeply concerned about his brother because he's not sure how she'll handle it if Stefan doesn't come back.

He's not sure how he will handle it if that's the case.

She opens her handbag to put her sunglasses back, and pull out what seems to be a brochure.

"Wow, I had forgotten about that," she mutters.

"What?"

"It's a brochure for the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Before... everything happened, I had look into some fashion schools to go to next year. I had planned to visit it a few weeks ago."

"Really? Because you know you could just compel your way through the biggest fashion houses and be on the top much more quickly," he says with a smile.

"I know, but I want to learn. I want to deserve the job I would eventually get. Besides I wanted to go to college long before I became a vampire."

"Well, you can do the college experience as much as you want to, now, and get degrees into pretty much everything. But your brain might explode at some point from all that knowledge."

She laughs and put the brochure back in her bag.

"You can still go," Damon tells her. "Stefan can go with you, and you can both settle down over there, make a nice life – unlife. Ill come to visit and annoy you every once in a while."

"I would love that," she says, already imagining how amazing this would be.

He stops the car in front of the house and she turns to him. "Thank you Damon," she tells him with a tender smile.

"You can thank me by introducing me to hot models once you'll become the head designer at Chanel," he replies with a wink.

* * *

><p>Stefan brings back the car to the rental place then decides to walk back to Klaus'house.<p>

He feels funny about having to do this.

It should be easy though. Klaus is the villain of the story. He's the guy who killed his own family, who killed Jenna.

He's the guy who killed Elena, for God's sake.

He's the dangerous hybrid with an evil agenda. Or is he ? All those weeks spent with him, and Stefan never knew exactly what Klaus expected of him, or what his plans for the future were.

But that's the thing. He just spend all those weeks with him, and he would lie if he denied having a good time sometimes. Feeling like he had never felt in decades. He had _fun_. Klaus also unwillingly helped him to get control over his blood lust, even if it wasn't what he was trying to achieve in the first place. But at moments it was just like Klaus wanted to spend some quality time with a friend – something he had really never know. Something Stefan hadn't really experienced since Lexi, and later, with Care.

And then of course, he brought Caroline to Stefan. Without him Stefan may have never realized that Caroline was the one for him.

So, the thing is, Stefan doesn't really want to kill Klaus.

However, there's also Caroline's mental and physical torture that Stefan can't really digest. And there's Elijah.

Stefan understands the burden and difficulties of having a brother for more than a hundred years. But he also knows the bond it creates and the love that it provides.

But Klaus used Elijah and killed him at the first opportunity without a second thought – the way he killed his entire family.

And that, Stefan can't forgive.

It doesn't matter in the end how he feels. Klaus has to die.

Stefan makes sure the little flask with the potion is still in his pocket, and walks into the house.

Klaus is in the den, reading, and he stands up to welcome Stefan.

"Nice to have you back," he tells him in a neutral tone. "How's Caroline?"

"She was better when I left her," Stefan answers carefully.

"I'm glad to hear that. But I wish that you had come to me with that problem. I would have helped you."

"Really?" Stefan asks incredulously.

"Well, I guess you'll never know, right? It's a pity you had to do this behind my back."

The tone is slightly threatening and Stefan knows things are about to get difficult...unless he makes his move.

"I need a drink," he mutters, walking to the liquor cabinet.

"Great idea. Will you pour me one too?"

Stefan stops in his tracks for a second. It it going to be that easy? With the most natural attitude he can muster, the younger vampire pours each of them a drink, discreetly adding the potion into Klaus'glass.

He keeps a poker face while handing the glass to Klaus, expecting him to suddenly throw it away and reveal that he knows what Stefan is up to.

But Klaus takes the drink and empties it in one gulp.

There. It's done.

Stefan doesn't know exactly how it's going to happen, so he decides to act normally.

"I'm sorry about running away," he says. "Caroline was getting worse and I was really worried."

"I can understand that, Stefan. I know you love the girl. Don't try to deny it," Klaus adds with a smile upon seeing Stefan's stunned face. "I like her a lot, I guess you know that too. Maybe that's why you took her away, who knows?"

Stefan nods. "It was one of the reasons," he replies honestly while thinking, when_ are the effects of this plants going to kick in?_

Klaus stands up. "Well, I have to see to some arrangements. I'll meet you here in one hour, and we'll make some plans," he says before exiting the room.

Stefan decides to wait downstairs. Surely it is just a question of minutes now.

One hour later, Klaus comes back, looking as healthy as can be.

Stefan's heart break. It's not working.

In his phone there's a picture of Caroline, taken that morning in the motel. She's in the bed and she smiles happily at him. Crushed, he realizes that's the only way he'll get to see her now. A picture attached to a wonderful memory.

"I know you just came back," Klaus is saying, unaware of his companion's distress, "but I thought you wouldn't mind some more traveling."

"Where are we going?"

Klaus'smile sends shivers to Stefan's spine.

"Why, Mystic Falls of course. I want to give Caroline a proper goodbye."

* * *

><p><strong>AN : Tadaaa ! Ok, don't worry, it won't be that bad ;o) (or won't it?)**

**On a side note, it was that Damon & Caroline scene that inspired mr for my future Daroline fic, so those of you into that couple, look out fo it in a few weeks !**

**Thanks again for reading and have a nice weekend, y'all ;o)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Well, this is it, guys : This is the last chapter (minus an epilogue that will be posted tomorrow;o)**

**I want to thank absolutely everyone who read this, who took the time to review this (some of you every week ;o) as well as the unsigned reviewers whom I can't thank personally, but I really appreciate it all.**

**I'm leaving for Atlanta & Covington next week so hopefully being IN Mystic Falls will give me some inspiration for my new one. Anyone else going to the Convention ?**

**And of course I thank Heather who took the time every week to correct my mistakes and help me improve my writing in a language that is not primarily mine ;o)**

**There's an extra A/N at the end of this. Enjoy and review, please ;o)**

* * *

><p>It's early evening, and Damon and Caroline are in the living room. Damon is reading and Caroline is relaxing.<p>

They both look at each other when they hear the sound of a car stopping in front of the house.

"Already?" Caroline wonders, both surprised and delighted.

"Could be anyone," Damon mutters while standing up and walking to the front door. He doesn't want to get his hopes up until he actually sees Stefan at the threshold.

Fortunately, it is indeed Stefan.

But with Klaus. A very alive, not dead, Klaus.

That stupid plant didn't work.

A quick look exchanged with Stefan and a nod on his part confirms that he indeed gave Klaus the potion.

"Hello, Damon, "Klaus says in a chirpy tone. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"I don't know. Do I have to?"

Klaus laughs. "It would be the polite thing to do, but obviously you left your good manners in your other pants. Never mind. I came to see Caroline, anyway."

He walks into the house, followed by Stefan. Damon sends his brother a WTF look, and Stefan shrugs with a helpless gaze.

Caroline is waiting in the living room, her heart pounding in her chest. She's thrilled that Stefan is there, but if Klaus is with him, it can only mean one thing.

When he's leaving again, he's not coming back.

"Hello, my sweet," Klaus greets her. "I'm glad to see you are doing better."

She's shocked to see him, but not really scared. She was never afraid of him, she was afraid of what he was doing to her and Stefan. Of what he's still capable of doing to them.

"Hi Klaus," she manages to say. She needs to stay calm because she can see that Damon is fulminating behind the hybrid, and she doesn't want him to do something reckless. He doesn't know how to deal with Klaus like Stefan does.

Stefan who is watching her with a soft smile and a loving look in his eyes, a look that seems to say, "I'm sorry I failed us."

She needs to be strong for him so she smiles back. "It was nice of you to come all this way to see me," she states quietly to the older vampire.

"Don't think for one minute that you'll take her back with you," Damon intervenes.

Klaus calmly turns to him. "You are of absolutely no use to me, Mr Salvatore, so I suggest you shut up. I'm asking nicely."

Stefan sends his brother a warning look and Damon reluctantly concedes.

Klaus turns back to Caroline. "I was sorry to see that you had left without saying goodbye. I hadn't realized you were so unhappy."

She raises an eyebrow. "Really? So the crying and being an emotional wreck didn't give you any clue?"

Damon snorts and Klaus rolls his eyes. "Yes, about that..." he turns again to the brothers, "I wish to speak to Caroline alone," he tells them, and it's not a request.

"No way," Damon answers immediately. Stefan looks torn by the idea, even if he knows she is not at risk.

Caroline smiles to them. "It's ok. Klaus won't hurt me."

"Of course I won't hurt her, you moron," snaps Klaus, sending an exasperated look to Damon, the anger tainting his voice making his accent thicker. "If I wanted her dead, I would have killed her weeks ago. Besides, it's not like I have the monopole on tormenting our pretty blonde friend, here, right Damon?"

Damon blanches and makes a move but Stefan holds him back.

"We'll be right outside," he says evenly but with a warning glance to Klaus. He can see that Caroline looks fine, so he is willing to comply to the older vampire's request. Besides, it's not like they truly have a choice.

Klaus smirks. "Please Stefan, do so. And take that annoying brother of yours before I do something that I won't regret."

Once the two other vampires are gone, Klaus motions to the couch.

"Shall we sit down?"

He takes her hand in his. "I'm really sorry to have hurt you. At first you were just a means to an end. Then I realized how much of a gem you were. Will you be able to forgive me?"

She didn't expect that, so she takes her chance. "Only if you let Stefan go."

He sighs. "That's the only thing I can't do, Caroline. See, I have plans for Stefan and I."

Caroline nods, her last hope crushed. She knew he would say that though, but she had to give it a try.

"What plans?"

He smiles. "I'm looking for a way to create more hybrids...I don't have all the elements yet, but I'm optimistic. Why don't you come back with us, darling?"

Despite what he just revealed, she can't help but be touched by the plea in his voice. But she shakes her head. "I can't go on killing people for fun, Klaus. That's the reason I left. I don't have the moral strength for that lifestyle, and I refuse to turn it off permanently."

"What if I told you you wouldn't have to kill anyone anymore? You would just be a companion to Stefan and me."

She can't believe the lengths he's willing to go to have her back, and even more she can't believe she's actually tempted to say yes.

"Even then. Stefan will still have to do it, and I won't bear to see him go through that once again."

"That's because he never lets his true ripper comes out. I intend to change that," he adds, and despite the gentleness in his tone, she is suddenly reminded of the dangerous creature he can be.

She wants to be with Stefan, but going back with him and Klaus will only serve to destroy them both in the end.

She fights back tears, but Klaus senses her despair and put a caressing hand on her cheek.

"I'm really sorry, my sweet Caroline, I truly am." He looks at her and adds softly, "You remind me of my sister Rebekah."

And there it is again, the charming attitude, and she gets lost in his eyes for a minute, thinking that if he wanted to compel her to come back with them and do as he please, he could. The fact that he doesn't shows how, in his own way, he has come to genuinely care for her.

He suddenly stands up, putting a hand on his chest.

"Are you ok?" she asks, startled.

"I don't know. I..."

He takes a few steps before collapsing in front of the fireplace.

"Klaus!" Caroline screams, and rises to go kneel beside him.

Alerted, the two brothers run back into the room. They both stop upon seeing Klaus' body on the floor, graying rapidly. Stefan rushes to Caroline'side, and Damon stays where he is.

"Damn. That thing worked after all," he mutters.

Caroline put her hand on Klaus'chest, shaking him a bit. "Klaus?" she asks in a teary voice.

But the vampire is definitely gone.

Damon opens his mouth to say something, but shuts it as soon as he sees his brother and Caroline's faces.

They are both crying.

While he still has a hard time understanding their feelings towards that monster, he walks out of the room to give them some privacy.

Caroline takes Klaus'hand, squeezing it slightly. Her other hand grabs Stefan's and they exchange a meaningful glance.

Relief. Sadness. Joy. Grief.

Stefan puts his arm around her and she let go, turning into his embrace. He kisses her on the forehead.

"It's over," he whispers in her hair. "It's over."

* * *

><p>Bonnie arrives 15 minutes after Damon calls her.<p>

In the meantime both brothers put Klaus in the cell downstairs. The fact that he is grayer than a bloc of concrete doesn't mean he's not going to wake up all of a sudden.

Damon opens the door when she rings the bell. "Your witches failed to mention that there was like a 5 hours delay before he died. Gave us hell of a scare." he scowls at her as soon as she's in the hallway.

She scowls back. "They are not _my_ witches, and Klaus is dead. That's what you wanted, so what are you complaining about?"

He points with his hand to the living-room, where Stefan and Caroline are sitting silently. She's holding his hand like she still can't believe he doesn't have to go anymore. His other hand caresses her back in a circular and soothing motion.

"Will they be ok?" Bonnie asks Damon.

He shrugs. "Eventually. I think they are still a bit in shock right now."

She nods, understanding what he means. She too had noticed the way Caroline talked about her stay with Klaus.

They both join them in the living-room, and after some talking Stefan and Caroline seem to be relaxing, and slowly realize that they are now completely free.

"Something's bothering me," Damon says suddenly. "How did Klaus know about..." he makes a motion with his hand between Caroline and him.

"About how you mentally abused her?" Bonnie offers with an innocent smile. Damon glares at her and her smile grows wider.

"I don't know, he probably compelled me once to get information...I certainly didn't tell him willingly. It's the past, Damon. I'm long over it," Caroline adds and he sends her a grateful look.

Later that night, Stefan and Caroline are in his bed, savoring the fact that they can be together and nothing and no one will keep them apart anymore.

"Seems like now that we are home Damon and Bonnie are back to hating each other," Stefan says, amused at the memory of his brother and the witch bickering all evening.

Caroline chuckles. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

Stefan's hand is wandering on her belly and her hips, and she sighs with pleasure.

"How come I feel so depressed and blissful at the same time? It is really weird."

"I know," he says, showering kisses around her lips and her jaw. "I feel the same way. Give it a few days, and it will just be bliss," he adds before taking her mouth in a passionate kiss and she moans, pressing her body against his. Very soon waves of ecstasy are throbbing through her, and she forgets everything that is not Stefan.

* * *

><p>Reality comes back to slap them in the face the next morning.<p>

Stefan finds Damon in the kitchen and pours himself a glass of blood.

"When do you plan on talking to Elena?" Damon asks suddenly. "Because Bonnie and I are running out of ideas to keep her away. It's a miracle she didn't find out yet."

He smirks upon seeing his brother's face. "Aww, Stefan, let me guess : you were so caught up in your romance with Barbie that you totally forgot your _other_ girlfriend."

Stefan sighs. "I had other preoccupations, but yes, I kind of forgot about her," he recognizes, and looks at his watch. "Well, the sooner the better, I guess."

He comes out of the kitchen just when Caroline arrives, and he gives her a quick kiss before exiting the room.

"Where is he going?" she asks Damon.

"To see Elena."

Her eyes grow wide. "Right...Elena!"

Damon can't help but laugh. "Everyone forgot about poor Elena. I bet she wouldn't like that very much."

"Should I go too?" Caroline asks him.

"That depends. Are you worried that upon seeing her he'll get back to her and dump you?"

"No," she answers immediately, and he smiles.

"Love the confidence, Blondie. But better let him tell Elena first and give her the time to digest it all.

* * *

><p>Elena doesn't take the news very well. But she doesn't throw Stefan out of her house like he expected, or goes straight to stake Caroline. She just tells him she needs some time to process it and that it's better if they don't see each other for a while.<p>

Thankfully, with the help of Damon and Bonnie, and also the fact that Elena had already started to move on, it doesn't last, and barely one month after the beginning of senior year Caroline and her are on friendly terms again. It is a bit awkward the first times they all go out together, like at the Grill, but Caroline and Stefan try to avoid being too couple-y and it soon falls into normalcy.

After a while, it also becomes obvious that Klaus won't magically wake up and that he is truly dead. Damon and Stefan spend a few hours one afternoon burying his body very deep near their old mansion. Caroline wants to put a small cross on it, but the brothers dissuade her, mentioning it is better to not attract attention to the fact that a body is buried there. Just in case there is another plant capable to resurrect him...

A few weeks after, as they are both lying in bed one night, Stefan says, "I did something and I don't know how you'll react."

She rises her head, watching him with curiosity. "Better tell me before I start imagining the worst," she tells him with a smile.

He smiles back. "It's nothing like that. It's...I bought Klaus' house in Cape Cod."

She opens her mouth but makes no sound. That is the last thing she had expected to hear. "You did?"

He sighs. "I didn't do it out of a weird postmortem attachment to Klaus, don't worry. I did it for you. So you can do what you want with it."

She sits in the bed, looking at him with more and more awe. "What do you mean?"

He shrugs. "Well, you can burn it, if it will help you put it behind us once and for all. You can go and break everything inside, go crazy on the windows. Or...we can keep it a holiday house and go spent the next 50 summers there."

She caresses his forehead, playing a bit with his hair. With a smile, she asks, "What would _you_ want me to do with it?"

He looks at her with the most tender look she has seen so far on his face. "Care, this is where it started. You and me. I know it probably embodies a lot of bad memories, but those are not the ones I want to keep. There are millions of other houses, and we have an eternity to live in many of them, but this one just represent something special. But as I said, it's your call."

She puts her head on his chest with a happy sigh. She especially like the fact that he seems to envision the future - eternity! - with her. "I don't want to burn it down, Stefan. I feel the same way as you do. I might not be ready to go back right now, but I definitely want to keep it too." She laughs slightly and asks, "Do you think we could keep Riley and Spike as butlers?"

"I doubt it, I sent them a message telling them Klaus was dead. They are probably long gone by now."

He gives her a long, lustful kiss and when he stops to look at her, she's out of breath and her eyes are gleaming. "I love you," he tells her with a look of worship.

"I love you too."

And soon enough, houses, hybrids and other amenities are the furthest things from their minds.

* * *

><p><strong>AN : So, are you all very mad that I killed Klaus ? ;o) Because I was, lol. I tried to find a loophole and not kill him, but didn't come up with anything that sounded plausible, so I decided to go on with my initial plan. But of course he will be back with Stefan in my Daroline fic, for a super Daroline/Steroline/Klaroline fest ;o))**

**See you tomorrow for a happy & fluffy epilogue !**


	11. Epilogue

**Here it is, enjoy ! ;o)**

* * *

><p>It is a warm evening in Cape Cod, and the atmosphere in the big house on the beach is happy and festive.<p>

A far cry from what it was a few years ago.

Stefan and Caroline are both celebrating their graduation, Caroline in Fashion Designing and Stefan in Merchandising Management.

Damon and Bonnie joined them for the weekend. Elena was invited too, but she also graduating from the University of Virginia and her boyfriend – who is human – took her for a weekend away.

Caroline has been dying to know what's going on between Damon and Bonnie, but they don't give anything away. She's not really sure something is going on, but they are her two best friends, and she wants to see them as happy as she is.

"So, Stefan," Damon asks with a smirk, "Now that you have a big shiny degree from a fashion school, are you going to start dressing like Karl Lagerfeld?"

The girls laugh at that and Stefan smiles. "Karl Lagerfeld is a designer, Damon. I'll deal with the financial aspect of things, amongst others."

"Exactly. I'll design, and Stefan will handle the money stuff", Caroline replies, all excited because she intends to start right away and she is ecstatic to be able to start this big project with the love of her life.

"So, basically, you'll be her accountant," Bonnie tells Stefan with a mischievous smile.

"Yes Bonnie, thank you," Stefan says and raises his glass to her. Caroline mouths to Damon _You are so made for each other, _but he just gives her that fake innocent look she gets every time she broaches the subject.

Damon raises his glass too. "To my little bro, and my favorite blonde, and to the future Forbes & Salvatore Designs or whatever you'll call this thing."

They all drink to that. Stefan's green eyes meet Caroline's and they add another silent toast.

_To Klaus._

Caroline finds herself alone with Damon at some point and decides to grill him a little bit more. "So, the truth Damon. About you and Bonnie. Now."

He laughs. "Geeez, you are like a dog with a bone. There's nothing to say. Besides Bonnie was at NYU the last couple of years and still has one year to go. When would we have found the time to see each other?"

She smiles cheekily. "Every time you left from visiting me & Stefan, as she was like ten minutes away."

He shakes his head. "You're delusional, Barbie. Bennett and I barely tolerate each other."

"Yes, _barely_," Bonnie intervenes emphasizing the last word all the while exchanging a knowing glance with Damon.

Caroline shakes her head. "Yeah, right...you are still made for each other," she maintains before they all go out for dinner.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Caroline and Stefan are cuddling on the terrace, listening to the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. Stefan knows that this is Caroline's favorite place, and they make a ritual of finishing the evening there every time they come.<p>

Stefan is willing to do absolutely everything to make her happy. And she's been happy the last few years, like she has never been in her life before. He is determined to do anything to make sure that look stays on her face for a very, very long time.

Possibly for ever.

She's leaning against his chest and his arms are around her. He kisses her forehead.

"Congratulation on your graduation, miss Forbes. I'm really proud of you."

She smiles in the dark. "Likewise, Mr Salvatore," she says in a sleepy voice. The combination of several glasses of champagne, the soothing sound of the ocean, and the love and safety provided by Stefan's embrace bring her to a blissful and somnolent state. She raises her head and meet his lips, and they exchange a loving kiss.

It is still as passionate as the first time, but there's also now the intimate knowledge that they have of each other and which only served to reinforce the bond between them.

"I booked us a little vacation," he tells her when they break the kiss.

She laughs. "Isn't _here_ supposed to be our vacation?"

"Yes, but I was thinking more of a nice little getaway on a tropical island, just you and me. You in?" he asks with a tender smile.

She sighs contentedly. "Definitely. It will be amazing. Thank you."

"You deserve it. And hell, I deserve it too," he adds, and they both laughs before her face becomes serious again.

"I mean it Stefan. Thank you. It is thanks to you that I'm here today." She plunges her eyes in his. "You saved my life so many times."

His fingers brush her cheek and he winks at her. "Not bad for an accountant, huh?"

The End


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